Left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu, who missed the last two weeks of the regular season due to left shoulder inflammation, will start for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday in Game 3 of the National League Division Series.
Ryu threw 45 pitches in three simulated innings Thursday and emerged with no difficulties.
Manager Don Mattingly said Ryu should be ready to throw 100-110 pitches in St. Louis against the Cardinals.
“We don’t feel like he’s lost a ton of arm strength or anything like that,” Mattingly said. “This is late in the year, and if anything, Hyun-Jin is the right guy for missing this much time.
“He … doesn’t throw (bullpen sessions) in between (starts). He’s been through this once before. I think he missed 21 days or something like that, came back and threw really well. You see him after he sits out for 15 days and his bullpens are right on.”
If Ryu proves unable to pitch Monday, right-hander Dan Haren likely would get the start.
Ryu went 14-7 with a 3.38 ERA in 26 starts this season. He left his Sept. 12 start against the San Francisco Giants after one inning and received a cortisone shot in the shoulder three days later. An MRI exam that showed no structural damage.
Left-hander Clayton Kershaw, the likely NL Cy Young Award winner and a candidate for Most Valuable Player, will pitch the opener against the Cardinals on Friday at Dodger Stadium. Right-hander Zack Greinke will pitch Game 2 on Saturday, also in Los Angeles.
For Game 4, Kershaw might get the call on three days’ rest, which he did last year in the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves. He allowed two runs (both unearned) in six innings on short rest, and the Dodgers won 4-3 to seal the series victory.