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LOS ANGELES -- Hyun-jin Ryu ended his regular season with an abbreviated start on Sunday, gearing up for his first major league playoffs. Ryu allowed two runs in four innings in the Dodgers' 2-1 loss to the Rockies.
Sunday was the only time all season Ryu failed to last five innings, but that's because his short start was planned, and he was at 76 pitches through four frames. His first season in MLB was an unqualified success.
"Overall I"m very satisfied with my first year. Most importantly I got away without having any injuries," Ryu said after the game, through interpreter Martin Kim. "The pitch counts in games was beyond where I thought it was going to be, so I'm very happy with where my season ended."
Ryu was 14-8 in 30 starts with 154 strikeouts and 49 walks in 192 innings, and was second on the team with 22 quality starts. He allowed more than three runs just five times all season. Ryu joins Kazuhisa Ishii as the only Los Angeles Dodgers pitchers to win 14 games in their first MLB season.
With 64 earned runs in those 192 innings his ERA finished at exactly three, just north of his preseason goal to have an ERA in the twos. Ryu knew it as the game progressed.
"I was well aware. My goal was to be in the twos and I ended up right at 3.00. But I'm over that now," Ryu said. "The season's over and it's time to focus on my next games."
At Dodger Stadium Ryu was especially good, at 7-4 with a 2.32 ERA, 79 strikeouts and 19 unintentional walks in 97 innings. Of his fifteen home starts, 13 of them were quality starts.
At home is where Ryu will start in Game 3 of the NLDS. He has faced the Braves twice this season; he allowed a season-high five walks and two runs in five innings in Atlanta on May 17, but pitched into the eighth inning allowing just one run at Dodger Stadium on June 7.
With the regular season now over, Ryu is ready for the big stage of October.
"It hasn't really hit me yet, with the postseason starting. I know that the entire team is very anxious, very excited," Ryu said. "But the sooner we get over the anxiety and play the way we're used to playing I think my team will show what we're all about."