The Los Angeles Dodgers again are turning to Walker Buehler after splitting the first two games of a postseason series, with his Game 3 start in the National League Championship Series also coming on the road.
Manager Dave Roberts has regularly raved about Buehler’s ability to handle a pressure-packed moment. The right-hander emerged as a big-game pitcher prior to having a second career Tommy John surgery, and still relishes the opportunity.
“I feel good. I feel confident. I think that probably was one of my biggest strengths for a long time, was my confidence,” Buehler said before the Dodgers held an NLCS workout at Citi Field on Tuesday night.
“At times this year that’s kind of wavered somewhat. The past six or eight, I’ve kind of felt like I’ve been building blocks of some kind, and hoping to keep that going.”
Matters quickly spiraled on Buehler in his NL Division Series start, but he recovered from poor Dodgers defense in the second inning to provide some length. That wound up laying the foundation for a pivotal bullpen game the following night.
“If you look at my year I’ve had a lot of lot struggles having kind of clean innings. That second inning was a little squirrelly, but I had four pretty clean ones outside of that,” Buehler said.
“It definitely helps mentally. But at the end of the day I’ve got to go pitch good tomorrow, no matter what three innings I limped at the end of the game the other day.”
Now the 30-year-old makes his first NLCS start since 2021, when he struggled in Game 3 and again when going on short rest in Game 6 because Max Scherzer wasn’t available due to right arm fatigue.
But regardless of the round, Buehler effectively views all Dodgers postseason games in the same light.
“Every playoff game is huge. I think the round is less important. I think it being the second series for us, meaning that we advanced, makes it bigger,” he said.
“I don’t think it being the NLCS is kind of the thing for me. It’s another game I get to pitch with our team. Obviously, the East Coast-West Coast, L.A.-New York thing is pretty cool. I imagine it’s going to be rocking here tomorrow. That’s what excites me more than anything, is the noise and the excitement.
“The kind of live-or-die feeling on every pitch is something I’ve really grown to love.”
Walker Buehler appreciates Dodgers’ trust
The Dodgers gave Buehler every opportunity to pitch through some struggles throughout the year and haven’t hesitated to put him into pressure environments so far in October.
“We talked about it before my last start, but the big-game thing or pitching in moments like this or on the road, or whatever you want to call it, for me the most important thing about being a teammate or a starting pitcher is that your team trusts you in tough spots,” Buehler said.
“It’s humbling and a really big compliment for me to hear that from some of the guys.”
As for the expected chilly temperatures in Game 3, the Lexington, Ky., native is excited for the rare opportunity.
“I love pitching in the cold, personally. I don’t know why or how. When I was in college, I think I had the first 10 starts that were under 30 degrees one year,” Buehler recalled.
“So something I’m used to or at least used to be used to. Pitching in L.A. makes it a little bit difficult. But the cold is something that I’ve always kind of liked.”
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