Korean star Hyun-Jin Ryu steals spotlight from Yasiel Puig in Dodgers’ blowout win over Blue Jays

TORONTO – Some of the loudest ovations at the Rogers Centre on Monday night were for a member of the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers. And they weren’t for rookie phenom Yasiel Puig, either.

It was another Dodgers rookie, pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu, who had a sizable – and loud – cheering section. The 26-year-old from South Korea drew cheers during every appearance from fans who waved flags and chanted.

A Toronto-based Korean travel website organized the outing to see the pitcher make his first start in Toronto. It drew as many 1,000 Korean fans who took over the lower-level right-field sections.

It was definitely a lot more [fans] than I expected here in Toronto,” Ryu said through an interpreter after the Dodgers’ 14-5 win over the Blue Jays.

“I was very appreciative of that, it was a big help for me. I’m just happy the team did so well and we were able to pull off a win.”

Many of the fans, like Ji Ho Jung, were exchange students from Korea studying in Toronto. Jung leapt at the opportunity to see the former star of the Korean Baseball Organization. James Yoo, 28, was born in Toronto but was decked out from head-to-toe in Korean baseball gear. He wanted to see the pitcher that “everyone compares to David Wells.” Physically, it’s easy to make that connection. Ryu is listed at 6’2” and 230 pounds.

Ryu sent the Korean fans home happy, getting the win after pitching 5 1/3 innings, giving up four earned runs on nine hits. He left to a large ovation in the sixth inning. The win improved his record to 8-3 and he continued his streak of going at least five innings in every start this season.

“Thank you very much for coming out and supporting me today,” Ryu said to fans.

For the baffling Blue Jays, it was their fifth consecutive loss as they fell 13.5 games behind the first-place Boston Red Sox in the American League East. They’re now 10.5 games back in the wild-card chase and looking for their first win since beginning a 10-game homestand after the all-star break.

An apparent language barrier led to some confusion and little bit of embarrassment for all the home fans. The Korean fans, as is the custom in Korea, were chanting Ryu’s name during big moments and especially during the Dodgers’ four-run sixth inning.

In Korea, the family name comes first, so fans were

chanting “Ryu Hyun-Jin!” The problem was, it sounded an awful lot like chants of “U-S-A!” Every time the Ryu chants rang out, most of the crowd of 34,515 began emphatically booing.

“It’s happened before,” Ryu said.

As for Puig, he continued his recent struggles. He went 1-for-5 with an RBI single in the second inning. He also struck out twice and was hit by a pitch. He had been 1-for-14 coming in to the game, dropping his average from .397 on July 11 to .364 after Monday.

Puig did, however, show he is still worth the price of admission when he made a spectacular catch in right-centre field to rob J.P. Arencibia of extra bases in the eighth inning.

It was the Dodgers’ fourth win in a row and they pulled even with the Arizona Diamondbacks atop the National League West. Don Mattingley's team trailed the division leader by as many as 9.5 games on June 22.