Before things clicked for Walker Buehler in October, the 2024 season was a real struggle as he was pitching for the first time in almost two whole seasons. Buehler often appeared uncomfortable on the mound due in large part to not feeling in sync with his mechanics.
It definitely showed in his performances as the right-hander had a 5.38 ERA in 75.1 innings during the regular season. Buehler routinely was done in by lack of command.
Buehler’s 3.35 walks per nine innings was by far the highest of his career, and his 7.65 strikeouts per nine was also the worst mark he’s ever had.
Whether it be at the high school level, collegiate level or professional level, Buehler has always been highly successful while competing on the mound.
His performances in high school were enough for to receive an offer from Vanderbilt University, one of college baseball’s premier programs. Over the course of his three-year college career, Buehler went 21–7 with a 2.87 ERA and 260 strikeouts in 51 games. He became a first-round pick by the Dodgers in 2015 and enjoyed an excellent stretch from 2018-2021.
It is why the unfamiliar feeling of failure he experienced this past season had a profound impact. During an appearance on “The Just Baseball Show,” Buehler said the 2024 season humbled him but he has come out the other side a better player:
“I think the failure of this year has kind of changed the way I think about baseball. I think long-term it’s going to be a lot better for me. I think I’m going to be a lot more successful having gone through it.
“Largely, I haven’t failed on that kind of level, ever playing this game. To go through it and have this, ‘I don’t know what’s going on’ for an extended period of time, it’s definitely a humbling thing. You also learn a lot about yourself.”
If his performance during the postseason is any indication, Buehler still has the ability to be an effective pitcher at the Major League level. The Boston Red Sox seem to think so as they signed him to a one-year, $21.05 million contract to fortify their rotation for 2025.
It is a good landing spot for Buehler as he joins an already-strong Red Sox rotation that had the seventh-best ERA in baseball last season.
Walker Buehler’s ‘big turning point’
Looking at the box score from Buehler’s start in Game 3 of the National League Division Series, it would not seem to be the type of performance where things began to click on the mound.
However, Buehler believes it was in that game where he began to turn things around, despite the six runs he was charged with during his start agains the San Diego Padres.
A disastrous second inning that included plenty of defensive miscues by the Dodgers was followed by three scoreless frames from Buehler.
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