Dodgers will regret it... Buehler, who threw away after winning the WS, perfectly revived with one run in seven innings → LAD starters are struggling with injuries
Dodgers will regret it... Buehler, who threw away after winning the WS, perfectly revived with one run in seven innings → LAD starters are struggling with injuries
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Walker Buehler (31, Boston Red Sox), who failed to renew his contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers after the last World Series (WS), seems to have completely regained his condition.
Buehler, who joined the Dodgers as the 24th overall pick in the first round of the 2015 MLB Rookie Draft, made his big league debut in 2017 and played as a one-club man for nine years until last season. In particular, he performed well, consistently in the selection rotation in the 2018, 2019 and 2021 seasons, harvesting a total of 38 wins in three seasons.
However, he had a long hiatus after undergoing surgery on his right elbow in 2022. He returned from injury in the 2024 season, but failed to show the same performance as before with 16 games, 1-6 record and 5.38 ERA.
Buehler, who ended the regular season regrettably, displayed his true value in the postseason. He started Game 3 of the Championship Series against the New York Mets, pitched four scoreless innings, and became the winning pitcher by allowing two runs in five innings in Game 3 of the WS against the New York Yankees. He then served as the team's last pitcher in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 5, ending the Dodgers' victory in the 2024 season by neatly finishing one inning.
That's itBuehler, who played a key role in Juss winning the WS championship ring, did not even receive a qualifying offer from the Dodgers after the end of the season. The Dodgers reinforced the starting lineup by signing a surprise five-year, $182 million contract with Blake Snell instead of Buehler, who is feared to be injured.
At the beginning of the season, the Dodgers' choice seemed to fit to some extent. Buehler, who signed a one-year, $21.05 million contract with Boston before this season and virtually chose to re-enter the FA, had nine runs in nine ⅓ innings in the first two regular-season games, marking a shaky start.
However, he scored one run in six ⅓ against the Toronto Blue Jays on the 11th (Korea Standard Time) to achieve his first quality start of the season, and also pitched two runs in five innings against the Tampa Bay Rays, his most recent appearance, lowering his ERA to 5.23.
Buehler displayed his best pitching performance this year, signaling a perfect revival. In a home game against the Chicago White Sox during the 2025 Major League Baseball regular season held at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, Buehler pitched seven innings, allowing four hits, three strikeouts and one run, securing his third start of the season.
In the top of the first inning, Buehler allowed consecutive hits to opposing leadoff hitters Nick Maiton and Andrew Benintendi, facing a crisis of runners on first and third bases. Later, he took a breather by returning Luis Robert Jr. with a strikeout, but gave up the first run when the third baseman homered on Edgar Cuero's ground ball.
Buehler, who gave up a double to Brooks Baldwin in the second inning but allowed no run in the inning, suddenly allowed two batters to walk consecutively in the top of the third inning. However, he escaped the crisis by striking out Lewis Robert and Cuero in succession and even thinning out the next batter, Lenin Sosa, with an infield fly ball.
Buehler's overwhelming pitching continued afterwards. He did not yield a single on-base hit except for a walk to Maiton in the fifth inning and a hit to Sosa in the sixth inning, keeping the rest of the inning scoreless. Thanks to Buehler's good pitching, the Boston Red Sox also secured one run in the second inning and three runs in the third inning, satisfying the requirements for victory.
The White Sox chased after the changed pitcher Aroldis Chapman in the top of the eighth inning with Benintendi shooting a solo shot, but that was it. Justin Slayton, who came up in the ninth inning, took the White Sox's last offensive inning and retired, resulting in a 4-2 victory. 안전놀이터
With the victory, Buehler earned his third win of this season. So far, Buehler has posted three wins and one loss with an earned run average of 4.23 (13 runs allowed in 27 ⅔ innings) with 26 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.19.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers, which was evaluated as having the best squad in the history of this season, is suffering from string injuries of its main starting pitchers. Snell, who gave up renewing his contract with Buehler, went on the injured list on Wednesday due to shoulder inflammation after playing his second game of this season. Snell is currently pitching in the bullpen, but his shoulder pain has not fully recovered yet.
Tyler Glasnow, another mainstay starter, also went down the mound early after suffering leg cramps against the Texas Rangers on the 21st. The symptoms are not so severe, so he will play the next rotation without difficulty, but he can't just watch with confidence because he is "glass body" Glasnow and has felt similar symptoms in recent games.