Cody Snavely
According to Russell Dorsey of Yahoo Sports, Two-time World Series Champion right-handed pitcher Walker Buehler has reportedly signed a 1-year, $21.05 million contract with the Boston Red Sox.
For Buheler, the 2024 season was the first year he pitched during the regular season since mid-summer of the 2022 year, as the righty was coming off his second career Tommy John Surgery.
However, it became clear that Walker Buehler was not the “same” Walker we had all watched grow into a postseason hero and potential ace of the rotation.
By the middle of the season, on August 14th, after missing a full month away from the team trying to reinvent himself at a private Florida facility, Buehler currently had one win and four losses with a 5.58 ERA, 1.562 WHIP, and 6.30 FIP while also posting career lows in H/9 (10.9), HR/9 (2.5), BB/9 (3.1), and K/9 (7.6).
However, out of mendacity, the Dodgers needed Buehler to step up in October, and he did help the Dodgers secure their eighth World Series title and the second in five years. This time around, Buheler was front and center, not only helping put Los Angeles up three games to none but also closing out game five, clinching the title.
Despite Buehler finishing the 2024 regular season with a 1-6 record, 5.38 ERA, 5.54 FIP, 1.55 WHIP, .316 BABIP, and career worsts in Hard Hit percentage (41%), strikeout percentage (18.6%), and walk percentage (8.1%), he would end the 2024 postseason with thirteen consecutive scoreless innings.
While the injury bug hit Buehler hard and the road to glory was stressful and intense, Buehler still lived up to his name as a big game pitcher, improving on not only his postseason stat line (4-4, 3.04 ERA in 94.2 innings pitched) but was now 2-0 in four World Series appearances with a 0.47 ERA, one save, twenty-four strikeouts in nineteen innings pitched.
Buehler, 30, would enter free agency for the first time in his career, and after a strong October performance, he was still set to get a decent payday.
The Los Angeles Dodgers opted not to offer Buehler the 1-year, $21.05 million qualifying offer out of respect and fear that he would accept and be on the hook for that hefty salary.
This inventively helped Buehler’s free agent market, as the righty had no draft pick compensation attached like left-handed pitcher Max Fried or fellow righty Corbin Burnes.
Multiple reports suggested that Buehler and his camp were looking for a long-term contract, and a plethora of teams were already interested in him, including the Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, New York Yankees, and the Boston Red Sox.
However, the Boston Red Sox won the Buehler derby, snagging their man for a one-year deal equal to the qualifying offer. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, the deal also includes $2.5 million in performance bonuses.
The separation of the Dodgers and Buehler marks the end of a chapter in the Andrew Friedman era, as Buehler was the first pick of Andrew Friedman Dodgers’ tenure as President of Baseball Operations.
Still, despite his shortcomings, Buehler will forever be etched in Dodgers history. He finished with forty-seven wins, twenty-two losses, an ERA of 3.27, and 754 strikeouts.
Have you subscribed to the Bleed Los Podcast YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows & promotions, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
