Blue Jays officially sign ace lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu to 4-year deal

The Toronto Blue Jays have signed star left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu to a four-year, $80-million US contract.

The 32-year-old Korean led the majors with a 2.32 earned-run average last season and finished second in National League Cy Young voting, going 14-5 while pitching 182.2 innings for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Ryu made his first all-star appearance last year, starting for the NL.

The six-foot-three, 255-pound Ryu will become the third Korean-born player to take the field as a Blue Jay.

Ryu immediately becomes the ace of a Jays staff that was constantly in flux last season. He will be introduced at a press conference later today in Toronto.

OFFICIAL: We’ve signed LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu to a 4-year contract. Ryu led the Majors with a 2.32 ERA in 2019.<br> <br>Welcome to our family, <a href=»https://twitter.com/HyunJinRyu99?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw»>@HyunJinRyu99</a>! <a href=»https://t.co/dww0Ld6Ybk»>pic.twitter.com/dww0Ld6Ybk</a>

&mdash;@BlueJays

Sagging attendance

Toronto is building around a promising young core of hitters, including three sons of former big league stars who broke into the majors last season: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio. Looking to surround them with some proven pitching, the Blue Jays are set to add Ryu to the top of a revamped rotation that should also include newcomers Tanner Roark and Chase Anderson.

Roark signed a two-year deal worth $24 million last week with Toronto, which finished fourth in the American League East at 67-95 last season. Anderson, also a right-hander, was acquired from Milwaukee last month.

The moves follow Toronto home attendance declining from nearly 3.4 million in 2016, when the Blue Jays lost in the AL Championship Series for the second straight year, to 1.75 million last season, the club’s lowest since 2010.

Pitching was certainly a problem: No starter won more than six games for the Blue Jays this year, and the rotation ranked 22nd of 30 teams with a 5.25 ERA.

More big deals coming for agent Boras?

Ryu, who turns 33 in March, spent his first seven years in the majors with the Dodgers after coming over from South Korea and signing a six-year, $36-million contract before the 2013 season. He was effective the first two years but sat out the 2015 season and made only one appearance in 2016 due to left shoulder surgery and elbow tendinitis. He also missed time in 2017 with injuries to his left hip and foot.

Ryu re-emerged with a 1.97 ERA over 15 starts in 2018 and accepted a $17.9 million qualifying offer from Los Angeles for 2019. He threw 182 2/3 innings in 29 starts this year for the NL West champions.

Boras is also likely to land lucrative deals in free agency this winter for outfielder Nicholas Castellanos, and in salary arbitration for several stars, including 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts.

«One hundred and thirty-five people in Boras Corp. work very hard for players,» Boras said in a text message to The Associated Press. «Free agency is an achievement few players ever reach, and I am honored to work for these talented players.»

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