Former Dodgers All-Star Signs In South Korea: Report

Former Dodgers pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu is heading home.

Ryu, who arrived in North America with the Dodgers after he was posted by the Hanwha Eagles in 2012, is returning to the KBO, according to Jeehoo Yoo of Yonhap News:

In five seasons with the Dodgers (2013-19), Ryu went 54-33 with a 2.98 ERA in 125 regular-season starts. He also went 3-2 with a 4.05 ERA in eight postseason starts across 40 innings.

Ryu lost nearly the entire 2015 and 2016 seasons to shoulder labrum surgery. Fully healthy in 2019, Ryu went 14-5 with a 2.32 ERA that led the National League. He finished second in Cy Young Award voting that year and was named to his only All-Star team.

The Dodgers chose not to re-sign Ryu after the season, and he landed a four-year, $80 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. Ryu was a respectable 24-15 with a 3.97 ERA in 60 starts with Toronto, but lost most of the last two seasons to Tommy John surgery and the subsequent recovery process.

Now 36, Ryu ostensibly had a hard time finding a North American suitor willing to meet his price. He’ll head home having gone 78-48 with a 3.27 ERA in 10 MLB seasons.

According to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO, Ryu’s contract will take him through his age-40 season:

The Dodgers will open their regular season in Seoul with two games against the San Diego Padres on March 20 and 21. Each MLB team will also play one exhibition game against a different KBO team during their stay in South Korea. However, neither team will play the Eagles.

Photo Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

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