One of the most underrated traits an athlete can possess is the ability to bounce back when things don’t go according to plan. Two Tommy John surgeries in ten years were not the plan for Walker Buehler. The procedure can be a career killer for many pitchers, especially the second time around. That does not appear to be the case for the veteran right-hander from Lexington, Kentucky, one of baseball’s few players to win both the College World Series and Major League World Series.
Don’t look now, but Walker Buehler is putting together a stellar comeback campaign in the 2025 season for the Boston Red Sox. Buehler is currently sitting at 4-1 (3rd in Major League Baseball) with a 4.28 ERA and 29 strikeouts to just 9 walks.
Don’t let the ERA fool you. On Saturday, Buehler registered his fourth quality start in a row. After struggling out of the gate to begin the season, Buehler has started to find himself again and has been an anchor in Boston’s starting rotation.
Buehler’s big league career began with tremendous promise. One year after Buehler led the Commodores to their first national championship under Tim Corbin, Buehler was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers with the 24th pick of the 2015 MLB Draft.
After Buehler was selected, he underwent Tommy John surgery. Buehler then rehabbed and ascended through the Dodgers' minor league system, making his Major League Debut on September 6, 2017.
In the 2018 season, Buehler finished third in the National League Rookie of the Year voting with an 8-5 record and 151 strikeouts with a 2.62 ERA.
In the 2019 season, Buehler went an impressive 14-4 with a 3.26 ERA and 215 strikeouts. That season, he became just the third pitcher in MLB History to record multiple games with 15 strikeouts and no walks in the same season, joining Pedro Martinez and Dwight Gooden. Buehler also earned his first All-Star Game Selection that season.
The following year, Buehler helped lead the Dodgers to a World Series title in a season shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic. In Game 3 of the World Series, Buehler recorded 10 strikeouts over 6 innings and became the third youngest pitcher to do the same in World Series history.
In 2021, Buehler finished with a 16-4 record and 212 strikeouts with a 2.47 ERA. Buehler also earned his second All-Star selection and was second in winning percentage for National League starting pitchers and was third in earned run average.
The 2022 season began with some new milestones for Buehler. On April 8, he was the Dodgers' Opening Day starter against the Colorado Rockies. On April 25, he threw his first career shutout against the Arizona Diamondbacks, a dominant outing in which he struck out 10 batters and gave up just 3 hits and no walks. However, as the summer began, so did Buehler’s arm problems. On June 10, Buehler left a game against the Giants due to discomfort in his pitching elbow.
That same month, Buehler had arthroscopic surgery to remove bone spurs in his right pitching elbow. Buehler then discovered that he needed a second Tommy John surgery and a procedure to repair his flexor tendon in his right arm. Buehler’s surgery took place in August 2022, and he would not pitch again until the 2024 season.
The 2024 season was a challenge for Buehler. When he returned to the mound in May 2024, his upper-90s velocity had dipped, and he was surrendering hard contact. That summer, Buehler returned to the minors for another rehab stint and was reactivated on August 14th. He finished the season with a 1-6 record and a 5.38 ERA over 15 starts.
Buehler began to find his old form deep into the postseason with a dominant Game 3 outing in the NLCS, where he struck out 6 batters over four scoreless innings. In Game 3 of the World Series, Buehler flashed again with 5 strikeouts over 5 shutout innings and earned the win.
On just one day of rest, Buehler closed out Game 5 of the World Series and pitched a scoreless ninth inning, earning his first career save and securing his second world championship.
Despite Buehler’s strong finish to the postseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers said no thanks when it came time for free agency. The team that had drafted him as a first-round pick was moving on. On December 18, 2024, Buehler signed a one-year, $ 21.5 million contract with the Boston Red Sox, a low-risk, high-reward deal for a pitcher eager to show that he could still compete at a high level and that the World Series he just shined in was no fluke.
Buehler’s arrival in Boston came with some question marks. Would his velocity return? Could Buehler stay healthy? How deep in games could he go? After getting tagged for 9 runs in his first two starts with the Sox, talk show radio hosts and fans in Boston began to wonder if the Buehler signing was a wise move.
And then came the next four starts. In his last four outings, the veteran right-hander is 3-0 with 22 strikeouts, just 8 total walks, and 7 total runs. In three of those four starts, Buehler has surrendered 2 or fewer runs.
The old Walker Buehler has started to emerge. While Buehler’s box scores of late have been steady, how he has done it has been even more impressive, utilizing his full six-pitch arsenal. In frigid “springtime” Boston, Buehler has hit 95 on the radar gun several times. He has attacked with his fastball early in counts and expanded the zone with two strikes. Buehler has painted with his cutter. And he has kept hitters off balance with his devastating curveball and changeup.
And most importantly, Buehler is feeling like himself again. After his second home start on April 10, 2025, Buehler was asked about how he felt on the mound after recording 7 strikeouts over 6.1 strong innings.
“ I think largely pre-surgery and non-playoffs — regular-season games — I think this is as good as I felt,” Buehler said. “We put in a ton of work this week with everyone in the building about what we’re seeing, what we’re feeling and it paid off this week, and now it’s kind of rinse and repeat and hope it kind of stays in there.”
The April 10 outing may have been a no-decision, but Buehler felt that his adjusted routine worked.
“I just felt more violent than I have in a long time. That’s how I play when I’m good.”
Buehler’s ascension has been one of the bright spots for a Red Sox team looking to get back to the postseason for the first time since 2021. Although Garrett Crochet has begun the season strong as the team’s ace, Buehler has twice as many wins and has emerged as a viable option at the front of the rotation.
Everyone loves a comeback story. It looks like Walker Buehler has started writing his own.
