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It's hard enough trying to concentrate on making a major league debut, as Hyun-jin Ryu will do Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium against the Giants. But when Ryu has to follow the shutout-throwing, home-run-hitting Clayton Kershaw on the mound for the Dodgers, the expectations got a little higher.
"He has a lot to live up to now," said manager Don Mattingly, laughing, on Monday.
Not that Ryu isn't used to the big stage. He has been a star for seven years in Korea, and gets his first crack at major league hitters in a real game on Tuesday night.
Ryu, 26, is the ninth Dodgers pitcher age 25 or older to make his major league debut as a starter since the club moved to Los Angeles. In the last five such debuts, the debuting pitcher has allowed one run or less.
| LA Dodgers starting pitchers debuting at 25+ | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitcher | Debut | Opponent | Dec | Team | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Stephen Fife | 7/17/12 | Philadelphia | ND | L, 3-2 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Hiroki Kuroda | 4/4/08 | San Diego | W | W, 7-1 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Kazuhisa Ishii | 4/6/02 | Colorado | W | W, 9-2 | 5⅔ | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Hideo Nomo | 5/2/95 | San Francisco | ND | L, 4-3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| Jim Neidlinger | 8/1/90 | San Francisco | ND | L, 2-1 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Terry Wells | 7/3/90 | Chicago | ND | W, 7-6 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
| William Brennan | 7/19/88 | St. Louis | L | L, 3-2 | 4⅔ | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Larry Miller | 6/21/64 | Cincinnati | L | L, 2-1 | 6⅓ | 5 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5 |
Ryu is one of a number of Dodgers with news regarding streaks:
- Sure the games didn't count, but Ryu retired the final 23 batters he faced during spring training. I'm guessing the game won't stop with one out in the second inning to acknowledge a milestone should Ryu retire the first four in order on Tuesday.
- Adrian Gonzalez singled, walked, and was hit by a pitch on Monday. The single extended his hitting streak to 16 games, dating back to 2012. During the streak Gonzalez is hitting .393/.448/.541.
- Luis Cruz was intentionally walked in the eighth inning on Monday, ending a streak of 123 plate appearances without a base on balls. Cruz last walked on Aug. 29, 2012, and went his final 31 games of last season without a free pass.
Game info
Time: 7:10 p.m. PT
TV: Prime Ticket, MLB Network