In 2024, River Ryan burst onto the scene as perhaps the Los Angeles Dodgers most promising young pitcher.
Acquired in the Matt Beaty trade with the San Diego Padres, the former infielder has flourished since taking the mound as a pitcher. Ryan went 4-0 with a 1.33 ERA in his only taste at the Big Leagues level. An elbow injury kept him out of action for all of 2025 — and now the North Carolina native is back healthy and hoping to provide Los Angeles with yet another elite arm.
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Doug McKain of Dodgers Nation had an all-exclusive interview with the promising pitcher. Ryan and McKain touched on several different topics pertaining to his recovery process.
McKain specifically asked Ryan about his mindset going into the 2026 season given that the starting rotation is already loaded with depth and talent. Ryan’s answer demonstrated real maturity and perspective given the climb he faces to potentially one of the team’s top-six starters.
“Honestly, we have a lot of great starting pitchers. But honestly, I’m just going to do what [the organization] tells me to do. I mean, it’s a blessing just to be able to play Major League Baseball at all. It’s definitely healthy competition. All of the guys get along. It’s fun to compete like that. I’m just going to go out there and control what I can control. I try not to worry about whether I’m going to be a No. 1 starter or a No. 5 starter. The chips are going to fall where they may.”
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It’ll be interesting to see what the Dodgers do with Ryan. He has power stuff and a repertoire of six pitches to pull from. There’s a world where he could fulfill the long reliever/spot starter role — something various pitchers have been thrust into over the years.
There’s also a scenario where Ryan from the jump becomes one of the team’s top-six starters. Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, and Tyler Glasnow are etched in stone as concrete fixtures. From there, the final two spots in the rotation in all likelihood will come from a group featuring Ryan, Emmet Sheehan, Justin Wrobleski, Gavin Stone, and Roki Sasaki.
Given Ryan’s arm talent, assuming he stays healthy, there’s no reason to think that he can’t be a very important piece to the 2026 team.
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Photo Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
