Why Dodgers aren't calling up River Ryan to replace Shohei Ohtani in rotation

Los Angeles Dodgers On SI · Jul 22, 2026 21:00 · 3 min read

Why Dodgers Aren't Calling Up River Ryan to Replace Shohei Ohtani in Rotation — Feb 14, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher River Ryan throws bullpen during spring training camp. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Los Angeles Dodgers aren't planning to bring River Ryan to the major leagues despite the injury to Shohei Ohtani. Here's why.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are currently dealing with multiple injuries within the starting rotation, including a newer one to two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani.

Ohtani has been shut down from pitching indefinitely as he deals with an ongoing knee injury. The ace missed his final start before the All-Star break, and didn't play in the All-Star Game.

Ohtani revealed that the injury has impacted him more as a pitcher than a hitter, which is why he has remained in the lineup. But the Dodgers don't have a firm timeline on when he'll be able to rejoin the starting rotation.

Los Angeles has already been without both Tyler Glasnow (back) and Blake Snell (elbow) in the rotation, leaving them with limited options. But even with this, the team isn't planning to call up top pitching prospect River Ryan to the big leagues just yet.

Dodgers insider Maddie Lee of The Los Angeles Times reported the reasoning behind the lack of a call-up for Ryan.

"Top pitching prospect River Ryan, expected to contribute to the team, has battled a hamstring injury in Triple-A," Lee wrote. "On the minor-league injured list since late June, he’s throwing off a mound again, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. But he still needs to build up to a starter’s workload."

Ryan has been dealing with a hamstring injury, so the Dodgers don't want to push him. The right-hander will need to build back up once he returns, and then maybe the Dodgers will call him up, especially if the injuries continue to pile up.

The injury to Ryan isn't considered overly serious, but the team will stay patient with his recovery. The last thing that the Dodgers need is for him to be out longer than necessary.

Los Angeles has been very happy with Ryan's progress this season, with the young starter posting a 4.46 ERA over eight starts. Ryan missed the entire 2025 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, so he's been trying to get back into full form all year.

The Dodgers' decision-makers have held firm in their stance to keep Ryan in the minor leagues, even before the injury. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman offered more insight earlier this season into when Ryan could be called up.

“Obviously [Ryan] is incredibly talented, and he’s going to be a big part of what we do going forward,” Friedman said to The Athletic. “But we’ve seen it with a lot of our young guys coming back from major surgery; it’s tough. And as much as we can ease that process along to have him in as good a spot to not only help us at the major-league level, but also be a very strong option for us in October, the better.”

Ryan has pitched in the majors before, with the right-hander making four starts for the Dodgers in 2024. In the limited time, Ryan registered a ERA of 1.33 over 20.1 innings.