Blue Jays' Ryu Hyun-jin suffers minor injury, likely to miss 2-3 starts

SEOUL, April 20 (Yonhap) -- The Toronto Blue Jays' South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin, who has been on the 10-day injured list (IL) with left forearm inflammation, is suffering from a minor injury and expected to miss two or three possible starts.

"Ryu is in a rest period. Expected to resume throwing sometime soon," Ben Nicholson-Smith, a reporter from the Canadian sports media Sportsnet, said Tuesday (local time) on his Twitter account. "Injury doesn't appear major based on MRI reading, but clearly far from ideal."

He said the left-hander is now staying in Toronto, not joining his team on a trip to Boston.

"The hope is that Hyun-Jin Ryu (forearm) misses only 2-3 starts," tweeted Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

Ryu reported soreness in his left forearm after his second start of the season against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday. He was later placed on the 10-day IL after receiving an MRI.

The Korean southpaw, who is in the third season of a four-year, US$80 million contract signed with the Jays at the end of 2019, made a worse-than-expected start to the 2022 season, showing shaky control and velocity.

He allowed six earned runs in 3.1 innings last weekend against the Texas Rangers and gave up five earned runs in four innings against the A's on Saturday. He posts a 13.50 ERA after the two outings.

The oft-injured Ryu had previously been on the IL some several occasions since making his major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2013. He missed the entire 2015 season after undergoing a shoulder operation and then pitched just once in 2016 because of elbow issues.

Ryu, 35, has also been on the sidelines with injuries ranging from a hip contusion and a groin strain to neck soreness and a glute strain.

brk@yna.co.kr
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