Hyun-Jin Ryu
From BR Bullpen
Hyun-Jin Ryu
- Bats Right, Throws Left
- Height 6' 3", Weight 215 lb.
- High School Dongsan High School
Fresh out of high school, Hyun-Jin Ryu exploded onto the scene of the Korea Baseball Organization in 2006. He was the winning pitcher in the Gold Medal game at the 2008 Olympics.
Ryu had Tommy John surgery while in high school. Making 20 million won ($21,520), Ryu dominated the KBO for the 2006 Hanwha Eagles. He went 18-6 with one save and a 2.23 ERA while striking out 204 in 201 2/3 innings. He became the first player in the 25-year history of the KBO to be named Rookie of the Year and win the Korea Baseball Organization MVP award in the same season. Seung-hwan Oh had just missed the feat a year earlier, finishing second in the MVP race. Ryu also became the first pitcher in 15 years to win the pitching Triple Crown; Dong-Yol Sun had been the last hurler to do so. For the MVP award, he beat out a batter who had won the Triple Crown as well - Dae-ho Lee. He also won a Gold Glove Award. In the playoffs, though, he went 4 games without a win. His salary increased fourfold in his second year.
Ryu was 17-7 with a 2.94 ERA in his sophomore season. He struck out 178 batters in 211 innings to again led the KBO, robbing Danny Rios of a pitching Triple Crown; Rios was second in Ks and led in ERA and wins. Ryu tied Kenny Rayborn for second in wins and finished fourth in ERA.
Ryu was with South Korea for the 2007 Asian Championship. He started game one and allowed two runs in five innings in a win over the host Taiwan national team. Ryu was 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA in the 2008 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament, allowing 10 hits in six innings. He took South Korea's only loss with a rough outing against Team Canada, giving up a 3-run first-inning homer to Matt Rogelstad in a 4-3 defeat.
Ryu began 2008 strong, going 5-0 with a 1.83 ERA in April. In May, he was 0-2 with a 5.72 ERA. He was then sidelined with inflammation in his pitching elbow. He starred for South Korea in the 2008 Olympics, going 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA. In 17 1/3 IP, he allowed 10 hits and struck out 13 batters. He went the distance in a shutout of Team Canada in a 1-0 win. In the Gold Medal game, he went 8 1/3 IP in a 3-2 win over the Cuban national team, allowing solo homers to Michel Enríquez and Alexei Bell. He allowed Cuba to load the bases in the bottom of the 9th on a single to Héctor Olivera Jr. and walks to Frederich Cepeda and Bell. Tae-hyun Chong relieved Ryu and closed out the win as South Korea won Gold in its brightest moment on the international stage. He tied Suk-min Yoon, Norge Vera, Hideaki Wakui and Jonder Martínez for the most wins in Beijing. Overall in the 2008 KBO, Ryu was 14-7 with a 3.31 ERA, a significant drop-off from his strong start. He tied Suk-min Yoon for second in the league in wins, behind Kwang-hyun Kim. He was second to Kim in strikeouts and was 8th in ERA.
Ryu was 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA in the 2009 World Baseball Classic; his five appearances tied Hyun-wook Jong and Chang-yong Lim for the lead on the second-place Korean squad. In the Gold Medal game, Ryu relieved Jong in the 8th with a 2-1 deficit, one on and one out. He allowed a double to Atsunori Inaba and a sacrifice fly to Akinori Iwamura. Chang-yong Lim would replace him; Korea went on to lose 5-3.
Main Sources: 2007 Baseball Almanac, KBO player page, Defunct IBAF site, 2008 Olympics
