Despite not making any additions to their starting rotation over the winter, the Los Angeles Dodgers return a star-studded cast for the 2019 season, headlined by longtime ace Clayton Kershaw and rising star Walker Buehler.
Though, there was some concern at the outset of Spring Training as Kershaw was temporarily shut down due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder, and Buehler was delayed in his throwing. Kershaw has since begun ramping up, and Buehler has also completed more throwing.
Buehler, who finished third in National League Rookie of the Year voting last season, thrived in his first full year of Major League action, going 8-5 with a 2.62 ERA and 151 strikeouts over 137.1 innings pitched (24 games, 23 starts).
Buehler elevated his game to another level in his first taste of postseason baseball, posting a collective 3.80 ERA and 0.85 WHIP with 29 strikeouts across 23.2 innings of work (four starts).
Having increased expectations with his dominant performances, teammate Rich Hill believes Buehler can eventually evolve into one of the league’s top pitchers, per Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
“He can be one of the best,” Hill said of Buehler. “He just needs to always push the level of creativity. He can associate hearing something, processing it and then implement it in a pitch. That’s key to being successful.”
Still just 24 years old, Buehler displayed as a rookie that he has all the tools to develop into the Dodgers’ next ace. He consistently rose to the occasion when it mattered most, earning a win over the Colorado Rockies in Game 163 of the regular season before tossing seven shutout innings against the Boston Red Sox in Game 3 of the World Series.
The Dodgers have taken a patient approach with him in Spring Training, which Buehler is understanding of and not concerned by. Buehler is looking for sustained success as he enters his sophomore campaign, admitting that he didn’t make any changes to his routine over the offseason.
