Earlier this week, the Boston Red Sox agreed to terms with right-handed starting pitcher Walker Buehler on a one-year, $21.05 million contract. This is the same amount that Buehler would have been due had the Los Angeles Dodgers made him a qualifying offer at the end of the season. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the deal also includes up to $2.5 million in other incentives.
The Dodgers drafted Buehler out of pitching powerhouse Vanderbilt in 2015, and he immediately underwent Tommy John surgery. After his recovery, he blitzed through the minor leagues, and made his big league debut in 2017. By May of 2018, Buehler was an integral part of the Dodgers’ starting rotation. Between 2018 and 2021, he made two All-Star teams and had two top-ten Cy Young finishes. In that span, he went 39-13, with a 2.82 ERA, which equates to a 146 ERA+.
Buehler missed the 2023 season after undergoing a second Tommy John surgery. And when he returned, he was not the same pitcher. His fastball, once elite, lost some of its zip and much of its late movement. When he took the hill post-recovery number two, he was a somewhat pedestrian pitcher. However, the Dodgers stuck with him, relying on him to start Game 3 of each of the National League Division Series (against the Padres), the National League Championship Series (against the Mets), and the World Series (against the Yankees). As most baseball fans know, his most memorable appearance was his one-inning save in Game 5 of the fall classic, where he struck out two, including Alex Verdugo to secure the World Series victory for the boys in blue.
Walker Buehler celebrates the Dodgers’ World Series victory after striking out Alex Verdugo. (Photo … [+]
Los Angeles elected not to proffer Buehler a qualifying offer, either because they believed he it would limit his ability to sign a multi-year deal elsewhere, or because they were afraid he might say “yes.” The Red Sox had no such misgivings. Boston’s Chief Baseball Officer, Craig Breslow, made no bones about the fact that the team wanted and needed to improve its pitching this off-season. At the MLB Winter Meetings in Dallas a few weeks ago, Breslow traded a package of prospects to the Chicago White Sox in return for front line starter Garrett Crochet. And then, a few days later, he signed free agent lefty Patrick Sandoval to a two-year $18.25 million contract. Sandoval is recovering from his own Tommy John surgery, and most likely won’t be available to the Red Sox until after the All-Star break.
As it stands, Boston’s starting rotation pencils out to be Crochet, followed by Tanner Houck, then Buehler, Brayan Bello, and Kutter Crawford. Lucas Giolito, coming off his own TJ surgery, is also in the mix. The Red Sox are no strangers to pitchers recovering from this surgery, as they previously employed James Paxton and Liam Hendricks at similar points in their careers.
Buehler essentially takes the place — for the same money — as Nick Pivetta, who turned down Boston’s qualifying offer and remains unsigned as of this writing (although the San Francisco Giants have expressed some interest).
A $21 million pillow contract for Buehler gives him the opportunity to prove to the baseball world that he can again be “the guy” who started five Game 1s in his tenure with Los Angeles. He gives the Red Sox another power arm to help them compete in the demanding American League East. And Buehler will once again find himself pitching in the Bronx in front of a hostile crowd who wishes him nothing but ill will.
Buehler’s signing alone may reignite the Yankee-Red Sox rivalry. And if it does that, regardless of his success on the mound, it will be money well-spent.
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