The Los Angeles Dodgers tried to take things as slowly as they possibly could with former Cy Young Award candidate Walker Buehler, who had a planned delayed start to the 2024 regular season following the second Tommy John surgery of his career.
Buehler participated in spring training, suggesting he’d be good to go for Opening Day. But he and the team decided that it would be best for him to spend the first month of the year rehabbing in the minor leagues.
After struggling mightily to get back on track, Buehler is now back on the injured list to reset as he and the club search for answers.
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Walker Buehler Injury Update for Fantasy Baseball
Buehler took a comebacker during the June 18 start at Coors Field against the division-rival Colorado Rockies. The Dodgers decided they had seen enough after the hurler gave up a season-worst seven runs by sending him to the IL with “right hip inflammation” on June 19.
Walker Buehler is headed to the IL pic.twitter.com/dVhWQ6UVIN
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 20, 2024
There’s reason to believe that if Buehler weren’t pitching so poorly, he would not have been moved to the shelf so quickly. Look at what the New York Mets did with Edwin Diaz a couple of weeks ago. The scuffling hurler picked up a right-shoulder impingement and was immediately put on the IL to offer him an opportunity to reset, considering he was never shut down from throwing and back when first eligible to return.
Walker Buehler Fantasy Baseball Outlook
If we’re being honest, there’s really no telling when Buehler will be back in the major league rotation. The good news is that the 29-year-old right-hander isn’t dealing with a significant setback that would necessitate a multi-week absence. The bad news, however, is he may end up spending a considerable amount of time back in the minors on assignment to sharpen up his mechanics.
In other news, Dave Roberts said the Dodgers are still deciding what Walker Buehler's IL process is going to look like
He mentioned that the extra weight/strength Buehler put on this offseason might be impacting his mechanics
Full answer: pic.twitter.com/odfIcvDeJX
— Jack Harris (@ByJackHarris) June 22, 2024
Buehler owns a 5.84 ERA (6.04 FIP), 1.51 WHIP, and 31:10 K:BB over eight starts (37 innings), but his fastball velocity is still where it was pre-Tommy John surgery in 2022. He’s a two-time All-Star and still has a chance to be an impact fantasy contributor during the second half of the campaign, but there’s a chance that he’s sidelined through July’s All-Star break.
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