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Ryu Hyun-jin beats Ohtani in season’s first encounter

Posted May. 28, 2022 07:36,   

Updated May. 28, 2022 07:36

한국어

Ryu Hyun-jin of the Toronto Blue Jays picked up his second win of the season, beating Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels. Ryu allowed one walk and no hit against Ohtani in the Japanese two-way player’s three at-bats.

In an away match against the Angels on Thursday (local time), Ryu led his team to a 6-3 victory, allowing two runs on six hits with one walk and one strikeout in five innings. He also lowered his ERA from 6.00 to 5.48. It was the first victory in his fifth showdown against Japanese pitchers since his MLB debut. Before Friday’s game, Ryu recorded three straight losses against Japanese pitchers.

The Blue Jays got off to a good start with George Springer’s leadoff homer. Ryu gave up three straight hits and one run in the third inning, but finished the inning with only two runs by inducing a groundball against Mike Trout and Ohtani. On Friday, Ryu averaged 88.7 mph, topping out at 93.9 mph. Ryu overpowered Angeles batters with a mix of quality pitches, including 30 four-seam fastballs, 15 change-ups, and 10 cutters and curve balls.

Ryu got the better of Ohtani at-bat. The South Korean pitcher gave up a walk to Ohtani, who batted as a designated hitter, in the first inning, but induced an infield grounder in the third inning and earned a strike out in the fifth inning, the only strike-out Ryu had that day. Ryu retired Mike Trout in all three encounters, gaining the upper hand over him. Before Friday’s game, Ryu allowed no hits to Trout in 13 at-bats. Trout, three-time American League Most Valuable Player, is currently ranked No.1 in the entire MLB with a 1.065 OPS.


Hong-Gu Kang windup@donga.com