By Kyung-yoon Kim = “Korean Monster” Ryu Hyun-jin, 36, of the Toronto Blue Jays, will attempt to regain his first win since returning from injury.
Ryu will take the mound against the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, at 8:10 a.m. ET.
Ryu will be looking for his first win in 438 days since May 27 against the Los Angeles Angels last year.
He will also attempt to reach 900 strikeouts in his MLB career, just one shy of the milestone.
Ryu had a somewhat disappointing outing against the Baltimore Orioles on May 2 in his first game back.
In five innings, he gave up four runs on nine hits, including one home run, and one walk to take the loss.
His fastball velocity (146.5 mph, average 143 mph) wasn’t up to par, and his changeup was shaky.
But Ryu was not disappointed. It was his first start in 14 months after undergoing ligament splicing surgery on his left elbow, and it wasn’t a bad result considering the opponent was the Baltimore Orioles, the American League (AL)’s winningest team.
“I think my velocity will go up another mile or two (about 1.60 to 3.22 kilometers),” he said after his comeback. Next time, I’m going to win,” he said, exuding confidence.
For now, the prospects for a first win are bright. The matchup isn’t bad. Cleveland, the team Ryu will be facing, is easier to handle than Baltimore.
Cleveland is 54-58 with a .482 winning percentage through seven games, which ranks 11th out of 15 teams in the AL.
The bats aren’t hitting as well. Cleveland is seventh in the AL with a .251 team batting average this season and last in team home runs with 84.
Cleveland is one of 15 AL teams with fewer than 100 team home runs. Their team on-base percentage is 13th at .382.
The team’s offense has been particularly dismal of late. The team has scored five or fewer runs in nine consecutive games, starting last month against the Chicago White Sox.
The team is averaging just 2.56 runs per game during that stretch.
Cleveland’s offense has collapsed because they’ve lost a number of key hitters to trades and injuries.
Leadoff hitter Jose Ramirez, who leads the team in OPS (.861), is facing discipline after getting into a brawl with White Sox infielder Tim Anderson on June 6.
Ramirez was not suspended by the MLB office, so he started at third base against the White Sox on Sunday.카지노사이트
First baseman Josh Naylor, the team’s second-best OPS (.846), is out with an injury, and fourth-best designated hitter Josh Bell (.701) was traded to the Miami Marlins earlier this month.
Sixth-ranked Ahmed Rosario (0.675) was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers last month in exchange for Noah Syndergaard.
Tonight’s starter, Cleveland right-hander Gavin Williams, is a rookie who made his big league debut this season.
In eight games in 2023, he went 1-3 with a 3.38 ERA.
Recently, he has struggled with innings pitched, going five innings or less in four straight games.
Toronto, on the other hand, hosts Boston on July 7.