The All-Star break was kind to Hyun Jin Ryu, who entered the second half of the season in peak form on Sunday afternoon in Buffalo, N.Y.

Making what was likely his final start at Sahlen Field, Ryu pitched all seven innings in the Blue Jays’ 5-0 win in the first half of their doubleheader, shutting out the Rangers while striking out four. Even though it was a seven-inning game, it counts as an official shutout for Ryu. The ace was incredibly efficient, too, getting started with a four-pitch first inning and needing just 83 to get through seven.

This is encouraging for the Blue Jays, as they look ahead to making a run in the American League East and AL Wild Card races, especially as they ride a wave of momentum back to Rogers Centre in Toronto on July 30. The Blue Jays have plenty of ground to make up and still need to address some roster flaws at the Trade Deadline, particularly with their bullpen and defense, but their high-end pieces can line up against any roster. That includes Ryu, when he’s at his best.

That hasn’t always been the case lately, though. Ryu went through a rough patch recently, posting a 5.35 ERA over a stretch of six starts from June 4-July 1, but he found his changeup in his final start before the break and his stuff looked excellent on Sunday.

“That’s the best I’ve seen him in a while,” said manager Charlie Montoyo. “It’s his changeup. When his changeup is good, he’s going to keep people off-balance, because they don’t know what’s coming. It looks just like the fastball and his cutter, so that was No. 1. Then, of course his command. That was really good today.”

Ryu’s fastball was noticeably livelier, reaching up as high as 93.3 mph, which set up his changeup to truly shine. Ryu was painting the edges of the zone, too, which is always the first thing to look for in one of his starts. When Ryu was off, he wasn’t wild by any means, but he was narrowly missing his spots and those inches matter when he's not throwing 100 mph.

This turnaround started when Ryu and pitching coach Pete Walker looked at his delivery and determined his arm slot and release point had dropped. That robbed Ryu of some velocity and made his pinpoint control more difficult, but it wasn’t a major fix to get back to his proper arm slot, which puts Ryu “on top of the ball.”

“With the changeup being there, and the hitters anticipating to swing at a changeup, I could throw anything and mix my pitches,” Ryu said through an interpreter. “That created a lot of weak contact and weak balls in play today.”

With his ERA at 3.32, Ryu looks like he’s stabilized, and with Robbie Ray behind him quietly having one of the most effective and surprising seasons in baseball, the Blue Jays have their 1-2 punch. Adding more starting depth will continue to be a priority for Toronto moving forward, but it’s a relief to see Ryu back to his peak form, because Ryu at his best isn’t something that’s often available on the open market.