Struggling Red Sox Pitcher Gets Brutally Honest After Latest Loss
Walker Buehler’s first season with the Boston Red Sox hasn’t gone according to plan.
Buehler signed a one-year, $21.05 million deal with the Red Sox last December, just two months after getting the final out of the World Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium. While he’d struggled during the 2024 regular season (1-6, 5.38 ERA) in his first year back from Tommy John surgery, both sides were hopeful he could rebound in 2025 after his strong postseason (1-1, 3.60 ERA).
However, Buehler’s performance has not improved. In some respects, it’s only gotten worse.
The two-time All-Star lost again on Sunday, giving up four runs on four hits and three walks in four innings against the Toronto Blue Jays. He’s now 5-6 with a 6.45 ERA, a 6.03 FIP and a 1.58 WHIP, resulting in a career-low -1.3 WAR.
Buehler hasn’t been able to find his groove this year, and he hasn’t shied away from addressing his struggles with the media. He gave another honest assessment of his slump following Sunday’s 5-3 loss at Fenway Park.
When asked whether he’s fighting to keep his spot in the Red Sox rotation, he said, “I think I’m fighting for my spot in the game honestly. I think at some point, throwing the way that I’ve thrown, there’s not a lot of places for seven ERA starting pitchers in the big leagues.”
The 30-year-old right-hander added that he’s going to keep fighting and still believes he can turn his season around, but he’s not sure when that might be.
Buehler was one of the best pitchers in baseball before undergoing his second Tommy John surgery in 2022, going 46-16 with a 3.02 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP in his first six seasons with the Dodgers. He’s been unable to get back on track since the surgery, however, and has spent much of the last season and a half searching for answers.
The two-time World Series champ has struggled with his command and isn’t missing as many bats as he used to. According to Statcast, he has the lowest average fastball velocity (94.2 mph) and highest barrel rate (10.1%) of his career.
Buehler’s season has also been derailed by shoulder inflammation, which caused him to miss much of May. Since returning from the injured list on May 20, he’s 1-5 with an 8.64 ERA and a 7.60 FIP in his last eight starts for Boston, but Alex Cora insists he’s fully healthy.
With the Red Sox sputtering at 41-44, they need Buehler to right the ship in the second half if they want to get back in contention and make the playoffs. If he doesn’t figure things out soon, however, they may need to move him to the bullpen and give someone else an opportunity in the rotation.