As starting pitchers continue to come off the market, Los Angeles Dodgers free agent Walker Buehler is one of the bigger names still available and he’s drawn interest from multiple clubs.
The Dodgers have interest in keeping Buehler with the team, but things seem to be trending toward his departure as the right-hander’s market has grown significantly.
The Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers have all shown interest in Buehler. In addition, the Athletics attempted to sign him before being shut down by Buehler.
Now, another team has joined the mix for Buehler, and it’s one of the Dodgers rivals. According to Buster Olney of ESPN, the San Francisco Giants have also shown interest in signing Buehler:
Walker Buehler is one of the most established free-agent pitchers still on the board following his strong showing in October, and per sources, his reps looking for multi-year deal with opt-outs. Yankees had talked about him before Fried signed. Red Sox, Tigers, Giants, among…
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 12, 2024
Buehler endured the worst season of his career after undergoing a second Tommy John surgery as he was limited to just 75.1 innings with a 5.38 ERA, 5.54 FIP, 1.55 WHIP and a career-low 18.6% strikeout rate with a career-high 8.1% walk rate.
Despite the down season, Buehler owns a career 3.27 ERA in 713.2 innings, which puts him in a category with the best starting pitchers available.
He also has a postseason pedigree, and even with his down 2024 season, Buehler shined in October with the Dodgers, finishing it out with 10 consecutive scoreless innings.
Still, the risk involved with pitchers to undergo two Tommy John surgeries remains high while the list of success stories are few and far between. He also has to show he can once again have success over a full season and not just limited to 10 innings.
Even with the concerns, a club is likely to take a bet on Buehler and hope he can fully get back on track. At the minimum, he presents an exciting name to bring in for any fan base with the hope of greater returns.
Walker Buehler contract expectations
Buehler is more intriguing to teams due to the Dodgers declining to use a qualifying offer on him, which means no compensation would be required to sign him. That is helping his market grow, rather than almost forcing him to stay in L.A.
The 30-year-old is looking to sign for a multi-year deal with opt outs in the contract, and he seems to be in-line to find that this offseason.
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