Dodgers absorb 1-2 punch: Hyun-Jin Ryu injured in 9-0 loss to Giants

The Dodgers are now only one game ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the National League West.

That wasn’t the worst part of their series-opening 9-0 loss Friday night to the second-place Giants on at AT&T Park. Not even close.

Hyun-Jin Ryu was charged with four runs in the first inning, after which he was removed because of what the Dodgers described as an irritated left shoulder. Problems with the same shoulder sidelined Ryu for three weeks earlier this year.

“It feels very similar to the first time,” Ryu said through an interpreter.

Ryu, who is scheduled to be examined Saturday by team physician Neal ElAttrache, acknowledged he didn’t know if he could make his next start.

The left-hander also was on the disabled list last month with a strained buttock muscle.

Replacing Ryu in the second inning with Chris Perez wasn’t what the Dodgers had in mind when they realigned their rotation so that their three best starters could pitch in this series. Zack Greinke will pitch Saturday and Clayton Kershaw on Sunday.

Something was clearly wrong with Ryu, as the majority of his fastballs were clocked at under 90 mph.

“I kind of felt it a little bit during the warmup session before the game,” Ryu said. “It’s something that I normally feel, but in the inning, it got very uncomfortable and I wasn’t able to execute the pitches I normally execute. The results showed.”

Indeed, Ryu was uncharacteristically hittable. He gave up successive one-out doubles to Joe Panik and Buster Posey, resulting in the Giants’ first run.

The Giants doubled their lead to 2-0 when Posey scored on a single by Hunter Pence. Center fielder Yasiel Puig made a failed attempt to throw out Posey at home — Posey beat the throw by a comfortable margin — which allowed Pence to take second base.

Pence advanced to third when Pablo Sandoval flied out to Puig at the warning track and scored on a single by Joaquin Arias. The Dodgers were down, 3-0.

Ryu then walked Gregor Blanco and gave up a run-scoring double to Brandon Crawford that increased the Dodgers’ deficit to 4-0.

Pitching coach Rick Honeycutt visited Ryu on the mound, but Ryu remained in the game and struck out pitcher Madison Bumgarner.

Ryu’s final line: one inning, four runs, five hits, one walk.

“Needless to say, this is extremely disappointing,” Ryu said. “It’s one of the most important games of the season today. I knew that very well.”

This was Ryu’s shortest start of the season. His second-shortest start was also against the Giants, on April 4 when he lasted two innings in a loss at Dodger Stadium.

Friday’s result was disconcerting because of the implications in the standings. Ryu’s physical status was even more so because of what it could mean for the Dodgers going forward.

Whatever their problems, the Dodgers could count on Kershaw, Greinke and Ryu to provide them with a sense of stability. The three pitchers enabled the Dodgers to be optimistic about their chances in any playoff series.

If Ryu is sidelined for an extended period, that would no longer be the case.

“I’m staying positive,” he said. “I believe it’s just one of those things. I felt this before in the past, so hopefully it will be the same time it took to recover from that.”

With a 13-10 record and a 3.99 earned-run average, Dan Haren has been a solid back-end starter. But the Dodgers wouldn’t want him to be their No. 3, which he would be if Ryu can’t pitch when the playoffs begin — provided they make it there.

A prolonged absence by Ryu could result in Roberto Hernandez being part of the playoff rotation. Hernandez, who is scheduled to make his next start Monday in Colorado, is 1-3 with a 6.38 ERA in his last four starts.

If Ryu missed even one start, the Dodgers likely would be forced to move Carlos Frias into their rotation. Frias, a 24-year-old rookie with one career start in the major leagues, pitched in relief Friday night and gave up a two-run home run to Brandon Crawford in the fifth inning.

Follow Dylan Hernandez on Twitter @dylanohernandez