Blue Jays pitcher Hyun Jin Ryu has Tommy John surgery, 2023 season in question

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Hyun Jin Ryu will miss the remainder of the 2022 season and could be out for all of 2023 as well after undergoing Tommy John surgery, the team announced Saturday.

On Tuesday, the team announced Ryu would miss the rest of 2022, but said a procedure would determine if the injury was severe enough to require Tommy John surgery. Now that he's had the UCL reconstruction and flexor tendon repair procedure, the recovery time for Ryu is estimated at 12-18 months.

Even with a speedy recovery, Ryu would likely miss a significant amount of the 2023 season, which is scheduled to be the last on the four-year, $80 million contract he signed with the team in December 2019.

Ryu, 35, made his MLB debut in 2013 with the Los Angeles Dodgers after a highly successful stint in the Korea Baseball Organization. He finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting and earned an All-Star nod six years later in 2019. Ryu was second in Cy Young voting that season and finished third in the 2020 Cy Young vote during his first season with the Blue Jays.

After recording a 2.69 ERA in the 2020 season, Ryu had a 4.37 ERA in his second season with Toronto. In 2022, he had a 5.67 ERA through six starts.