Roger Arrieta
On Friday night, Walker Buehler felt a “pop” in his pitching elbow. On Saturday night, we learned he’s headed to the IL.
Dave Roberts told reporters on Saturday the Dodgers No. 1 was headed to the 15 day IL and Michael Grove would return to the big league club to fill his spot. Other reports included Roberts saying Buehler would miss “a good bit of time.”
Buehler’s 2022 campaign has not gone as expected. After becoming the third Dodger in the last decad not named Clayton Kershaw to pitch on Opening Day, Buehler has stumbled out the gate, striking out 58 batters over 65 innings and carrying a bloated 4.02 ERA through 12 starts.
The Dodgers ace has gone 6+ innings four times this year, and deeper than that just twice, though one of those was a complete inning gem when he allowed just 3 hits and struck out 10 Diamondbacks.
A little time off might not have been a bad thing for Buehler to give him time to get his head right. But being a pitcher who has already had Tommy John, any possible elbow injury is a scary sign.
Buehler’s struggles appeared to be a straightforward one, though that doesn’t mean it’s one that’s easy to fix. Pitchers should throw pitches that are good and avoid ones that aren’t. This isn’t a revelation, but it’s something Buehler has had a problem with this year.
Of the six pitches in Buehler’s arsenal, he’s thrown his 4-seam fastball more than any other, about 34% of the time. But batters are clobbering that pitch. Batters are hitting .368 on Buehler’s fastball and slugging a monstrous .618, and, according to statcast, they should be hitting it even better as the xSLG is a whopping .667.
Buehler’s control hasn’t been an issue as his BB% is in the 73rd percentile, and when he does throw out of the zone, his 79th percentile chase rate suggests it isn’t a problem. The 1.29 WHIP isn’t a gaudy line, but it is significantly higher than his 1.04 career mark.
The Dodgers have recalled Grove as a stop gap option, but if Buehler is indeed out for “a good bit of time,” as Roberts suggested, we could see the Dodgers make a more permanent move.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today suggested the Dodgers might be in the market for a starting pitcher.
I’ve been a proponent of targeting the Reds’ Luis Castillo, who has turned in 3 straight quality starts and looks to be heating up after a slow start to the season.
Buehler’s injury could also mean we get our first look at Bobby Miller, a hard-throwing righty who shined in spring training. Miller was a top-65 prospect coming into the season, and was hitting 100+ mph with regularity in Arizona this spring. Miller has been less than sterling at AA Tulsa but replacing a pitcher of Buehler’s caliber could push the Dodgers to do something we all want and no one is expecting.
