Boston (AFP) – Los Angeles Dodgers left-handed pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin is prepared to become the first South Korean starter in World Series history Wednesday when he faces Boston in game two of the championship showdown.
The 31-year-old from Incheon will be only the third player from his homeland to play in Major League Baseball’s best-of-seven final, following relief pitchers Kim Byung-hyun of Arizona in 2001 and Park Chan-ho of Philadelphia in 2009.
“When I initially heard the news, I just thought about being prepared. And I feel like I am at this point,” Ryu said Tuesday through a translator.
“Last year, because I couldn’t make the roster, I was more cheering for my teammates and making sure that they were in their best moods. But this year I actually have to go out there and perform. I’m getting ready for it.”
Ryu was hammered by Milwaukee in his last playoff start, but returns confident he can become the first World Series winning pitcher from South Korea.
“If the last outing was more of a mistake, I’m going to try to make sure that tomorrow’s outing is going to be good,” Ryu said.
“Looking back at it, if I actually commanded all of my off-speed pitches to get ahead in the count, I think there would have been a different result.
“Obviously tomorrow I’m going to use all of the pitches that I can throw and try to command the pitches better.”
– Can feel ‘more tension’ –
Ryu, trying to help the Dodgers capture their first World Series crown since 1988, will start against Boston left-hander David Price, a 16-game winner this season.
“There seems to be more tension in the clubhouse,” Ryu said. “We’re excited to be a part of the World Series.”
Ryu went 7-3 this season with a 1.97 earned-run average and is 1-1 in the playoffs with a 4.40 ERA.
Ryu will also take the mound in unfamiliar Fenway Park rather than Dodger Stadium, where he has enjoyed his best results this season, because Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts wants to maintain his pitching rotation schedule.
“He didn’t throw a whole lot his last start in Milwaukee,” Roberts said. “Yeah, he has thrown considerably better at home, but just the way he’s throwing the baseball, we feel confident he can go out there and put up a quality start for us tomorrow.”
Ryu says familiarity with Dodger Stadium has bred success and that has given him more to build upon in warm LA compared to cold and windy Boston.
“Obviously it’s a stadium that I’ve pitched in the most, therefore, I feel pretty comfortable pitching at Dodger Stadium,” Ryu said. “Having that run of success definitely builds more confidence.”
But nothing has prepared him for seeing Fenway’s famed left-field wall, the giant Green Monster.
“My initial reaction to the Green Monster is it’s very tall,” he said. “I don’t think there is going to be much difference between a left-handed pitcher and a right-handed pitcher because the dimension is still going to stay the same so my focus will be more on making sure that I make my pitches and have a good outing.”
– Olympic champ in 2008 –
Ryu, who underwent “Tommy John” tendon replacement surgery in his left arm at age 17, spent seven seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization before joining the Dodgers in 2012.
Ryu pitched South Korea to 2008 Beijing Olympic baseball gold, defeating Cuba in the final — a win he says won’t help him much when it comes to the World Series.
“The Olympics, it all came down to that last game to win it all,” Ryu said. “The World Series you have to win the first four out of the seven.
“It’s really hard to say that such experience would help me, because we’re talking about two different competitions and events.”
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