Getty River Ryan
While the injured Los Angeles Dodgers players slowly make their way back to the team, they have now lost one of their top prospects to Tommy John surgery.
River Ryan left his start on Saturday, August 10 with tightness in his forearm. He initially wanted to stay in the game, using a Theragun between innings to stay loose. Ryan even told reporters after the game that he wasn’t worried about the injury.
“I feel pretty solid right now,” he said after his start. “We took some tests it’s strong. I’m going to go to a doctor tomorrow morning. See how it is. I didn’t want to come out of the game. I begged Doc to let me keep going.”
Tommy John surgery typically requires 12-18 months of rehabilitation, meaning Ryan’s 2024 season is over and his entire 2025 season is now in doubt.
It’s a gut punch for a team that has endured injuries to Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the starting rotation alone.
“It’s been challenging,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, per MLB.com. “Personally, I feel for each guy, because it’s their careers and I know how hard it is. Most recently with River and how disappointed he is, but it’s one of those things that there’s some sensitivity in the sense of feeling it, but also making the guys available feel like they’re the best options. I think they’ve done a really good job of picking up the pieces, and the guys who are available are giving us the best chance to win.”
River Ryan Speculates the Pitch Clock May Have Contributed to Injury
Ryan threw 52 pitches on Saturday, taking him through 4.2 innings. He gave up 4 hits in that time and struck out 4. By the numbers, he was pitching well. But Ryan felt a little sped up and he wonders if the pitch clock could have contributed to his injury.
“The pitch clock definitely makes you speed up a lot. Which back in the day you didn’t have to speed up as much when you threw,” he said Saturday, according to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. “Throwing back-to-back pitches within 15 seconds, it starts to take a toll.”
Ryan is now the 10th pitcher that the Dodgers have placed on the Injured List this season.
“This is probably the highest number I’ve dealt with. And really quality arms,” Roberts said. “You try to do everything you can to prepare them, take care of them, give them extra rest. Right now, it’s just happening a lot, certainly to us.”
The Dodgers Rotation Holds Solid
Ryan may be out for the year, but the Dodgers are heading into the stretch run of the season with an imposing rotation.
Tyler Glasnow (3.49 ERA) and Gavin Stone (3.71 ERA) have anchored the rotation through the turbulent year. The Dodgers also acquired Jack Flaherty at the trade deadline, and while he has one good and one so-so start with the Dodgers, he still has a sub-3.00 ERA on the season. He’s having the best year of his career since his early 20s with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Kershaw has only made four starts this year, but he’s looked strong in his last two. His 5.2 innings against the Brewers on Monday was the deepest he has pitched in a game yet. With Buehler almost ready to rejoin the rotation, the Dodgers still have options as they try to work out a playoff rotation.
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