Dodgers: Ryu Out For an Extended Time Period; Locastro and Garcia Up

The Dodgers had a feeling that Hyun-Jin Ryu would miss time after last night’s injury, but it appears to be quite severe.  It was announced Ryu tore his groin muscle off his bone and will be out until July.

After leaving last night’s game, Ryu said his injury felt more severe than his last groin injury that kept him out two months.  It turned out to be true as Ryu completely tore the groin muscle off his bone according to Dave Roberts.  The initial thought is this will sideline Ryu until at least July.  The Dodgers announced a pair of corresponding moves placing Ryu on the DL, optioning Breyvic Valera to Triple-A OKC and they called up Tim Locastro and Yimi Garcia.

The injury is a brutal blow for both the Dodgers and Ryu who is in a contract year.  He was off to a great start this season posting a 3-0 record with a 2.12 ERA.  Ryu had been the Dodgers most effective starting pitcher this season pitching better than Clayton Kershaw even.

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Walker Buehler figures to take Ryu’s spot in the Dodgers’ rotation initially, but due to his innings limit, I would not bet on him staying in the rotation consistently throughout the rest of the season.  The Dodgers starting pitching depth will be tested with Buehler, Brock Stewart, and Ross Stripling likely picking up starts the rest of the way.  For the immediate plans, Walker Buehler is starting in place of Ryu this weekend.

The other half of the injury news is that Tim Locastro and Yimi Garcia were called up.  Locastro is a very speedy utility player who was hitting  .342 in Triple-A this season.  He adds a new dimension of speed to the Dodgers as he has 148 stolen bases throughout his minor league career and is a perfect 5-5 this season in steals.  Locastro is capable of playing all over the infield, and this season he played second base and all three outfield spots for the OKC Dodgers.

Next: Does the loss of Seager mean the loss of a season?

Yimi Garcia is going to make his return to the big leagues after not appearing in a game for the Dodgers since 2016.  Due to multiple arm ailments, Garcia has missed each of the past two seasons due in large part to Tommy John surgery.  His Triple-A numbers this season aren’t too impressive as he has a 3.52 ERA, but he did strike out seven hitters in seven innings.  For a bullpen that has been struggling, any potential help is welcomed.