Former Blue Jays ace looks ready to dominate for Team Korea in WBC

It's been some time since Hyun-jin Ryu was leading the Toronto Blue Jays' starting rotation — three years to be exact — but the veteran southpaw is still going strong.

He's spent the past two season's back in Korea, pitching for his old team (the Hanwha Eagles). He actually signed a record eight-year deal with the Eagles after leaving Toronto as a 36-year-old, effectively returning to the KBO for the remainder of his career.

If you remember anything about Ryu's tenure with the Blue Jays, you won't be surprised to learn he's still dealing, even as he nears his 40th birthday. He's tossed nearly 300 innings since the start of the 2024 season, compiling a 3.57 ERA in that time.

Now, Ryu headlines a talented group of players representing Korea in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. In his first official appearance for the country's national team since 2010, the 39-year-old southpaw threw two scoreless frames against Nippon Professional Baseball's Hanshin Tigers in a practice game.

Hyun-jin Ryu hasn't stopped grinding since leaving the Blue Jays

For a three-season stretch from 2018-20, Ryu was one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. He finished top-three in Cy Young voting in each of the latter two campaigns, including a third-place finish in his debut season with the Blue Jays in 2020.

Having signed a four-year, $80 million deal prior to the pandemic, it appeared as though Toronto had finally found its ace for their fledgling core. Unfortunately, after a middling season in 2021, Ryu underwent Tommy John surgery in 2022 and never returned to his best form. Though the team made the playoffs three times during his tenure, the southpaw only made one postseason appearance with the Blue Jays, allowing seven runs in 1.2 innings against the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020.

That up-and-down tenure hardly defines someone who has become one of the most resilient and dependent starters of his generation. Ryu led South Korea to a runner-up finish in the 2009 World Baseball Classic and a Gold Medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. He'll now get a chance to help his country reemerge on the international stage during this year's WBC.

Speaking of, including three pitchers as part of the Designated Pitcher Pool (DPP), the Blue Jays will be sending 15 players to the 2026 World Baseball Classic, including Kazuma Okamoto (Team Japan), who will be in the same initial pool (Pool C) as Ryu and Korea.