The Twins finally figured out the reason for the All-Star right-hander's recent struggles.
Joe Ryan spent nearly a month looking for an explanation for what had gone wrong. The Minnesota Twins finally have one, even if it arrived with an inconvenient consequence.
Ryan was placed on the 15-day IL Friday, just a day after an MRI revealed a mild left glute strain. The move ended a stretch in which the All-Star right-hander had looked nothing like the pitcher Minnesota relied on through the first half of the season.
Manager Derek Shelton said Thursday that the diagnosis was actually encouraging.
“When I hear the word mild, I take a deep breath in and feel good about it,” Shelton said, according to Bobby Nightengale of the Minnesota Star Tribune. “It wasn’t something significant. Any time I hear mild, I feel like we’re in a pretty good spot.”
That word matters for Ryan because the recent results had raised more questions than answers.
He had posted a 7.59 ERA over his previous four starts, allowing 31 hits and 18 earned runs across 21 1/3 innings. His strikeout numbers had fallen sharply, too, with only 16 during that stretch. On Tuesday against Kansas City, his fastball averaged 92.1 mph — more than a tick below his 93.4 mph season average.
Ryan had already returned to the Twin Cities earlier this week to be evaluated after telling the team he hadn't felt like himself.
“You don’t want something to be wrong, but you also want to make sure that when your player is feeling something, that we’re able to attribute it to something specific,” Shelton said. “When you know specifically it’s isolated to an area, yeah, that makes you feel better.”
The diagnosis doesn't make the timing any easier.
Minnesota had just spent the trade deadline trying to strengthen a rotation that needed more stability, acquiring Dean Kremer from the Orioles. Now Ryan is headed to the injured list, and Zebby Matthews was activated from Triple-A in a concurrent move to fill the immediate vacancy.
Matthews had been pushed out of the rotation after Kremer arrived, despite finishing his most recent start with a career-high 10 strikeouts against Seattle. He still carries a 5.22 ERA across 14 starts, and his biggest problem has been keeping the ball in the park.
Still, Minnesota now needs him.
Ryan can potentially return during the Twins' trip to San Diego. With only two scheduled off days before then, Matthews will likely be needed for at least three starts.
That makes this more than a temporary roster shuffle for a team sitting three games behind the White Sox in the American League Central and just half a game out of the Wild Card.
The Twins may have finally figured out why Ryan was struggling. That should make everyone feel better about the pitcher eventually returning to the mound.
For now, though, they have to find a way through the starts he won't make. It starts with a pivotal weekend series against the Milwaukee Brewers.
