Hyun Jin Ryu pitched well in Low-A rehab start, Jordan Romano added to AL All-Star team

Hyun Jin Ryu made another positive step on his path to returning to the Major Leagues on Sunday.

The big lefty took the mound for the Low-A Dunedin Blue Jays and tossed four scoreless innings. He scattered three hits over the outing, didn’t walk a batter, and struck out one. All told, Ryu threw 37 pitches, 27 of them for strikes, and his velocity topped out at 88.4 miles per hour.

This was the second time that Ryu pitched since undergoing Tommy John surgery last June. He made his season debut back on Tuesday in the Florida Complex League and allowed one earned run over three innings of work while striking out five.

Ryu’s recovery has gone better than anybody reasonably could have hoped. Given his age and the nature of Tommy John surgery, there was reason to believe that he wouldn’t make it back to the big leagues, but his first two outings have generated optimism that he can help the Blue Jays down the stretch this season.

The Blue Jays inked Ryu to a four-year, $80 million contract following the 2019 season. He was the first major addition to support the team’s young core and he played a significant role in them making the playoffs in the shortened 2020 season. Ryu posted a 2.69 ERA that season and finished third in Cy Young voting.