The Los Angeles Dodgers lost twice Friday night. They were overtaken by rival San Francisco Giants in their 7-2 home defeat at Oracle Park (box score), and also lost right-back Ace Walker Buehler to an elbow injury. Buehler came out after four innings and 70 pitches with what the Dodgers initially called right elbow discomfort. On Saturday, Buehler entered the injured list and underwent tests to determine the exact nature of his injury. According to coach Dave Roberts, Buehler has been diagnosed with elbow ligament tension and will be locked up for six to eight weeks. After he is able to resume the throw, he must be ready for the game again. The team expects him to pitch again this season, but in Roberts’ words “it will take a while”. Do the math, and it could be September before Buehler is ready to rejoin the rotation, and that’s no setback.
“I had surgery on Tommy John, so I think [the level of concern] “It’s a bit increased,” Buehler told MLB.com on Friday. This is what happens in this game. Many guys at this club have dealt with things with their elbows. Be part of this game. I have full faith in our medical staff and other things. But before we get into that, we need to know what we’re dealing with. “
Buehler, 27, underwent surgery on Tommy John shortly after being selected in 2015. Since then, he has had no major elbow problems, with his MLB injury list as a result of a rib and blister fracture. Buehler allowed three runs in four innings on Friday and is making a season well below his usual standards: ERA 4.02 with a WHIP of 1.29 and 8.0 K / 9 are all the worst of his career .
Walker Buehler
SP •
ERA4.02
WHIP1.29
IP65
BB17
K58
The discomfort arose after throwing a broken ball at the third inning, Buehler said. He finished the inning and then also threw the fourth inning, but his elbow didn’t feel any better, so he was eliminated from the game. Buehler acknowledged that over the years he has suffered minor elbow discomfort, but was always manageable. This injury, however, appears to be worse than his previous elbow aches.
As the Baseball Prospectus pointed out earlier this week, Buehler’s fastball has not been entirely successful this season. His fastball has been an elite field throughout his career, although the twist and movement on the field are not the same this year, and as a result, opponents are punishing Buehler’s heater. These are the numbers from Buehler’s four-ball fastball in recent seasons:
2019
96.5 mph
2,456 rpm
.205
.368
24.5%
2020
96.8 mph
2,546 rpm
.102
.119
26.1%
2021
95.3 mph
2,472 rpm
.202
.366
20.3%
2022
95.2 mph
2,267 rpm
.368
.618
13.2%
MLB stockings
93.9 mph
2,260 rpm
.253
.429
21.5%
Buehler’s fast ball spin rate slowed after the repression of foreign substances last year (2,611 rpm before and 2,349 rpm after) and the launch has not been as effective since. It is unclear whether this new elbow problem is related. In short, Buehler and his fast ball have been wrong all season, and now he has a major injury.
“Some of the annoyances that you can overcome, where tonight, you obviously felt like it could be more harmful,” Dodgers coach Dave Roberts told MLB.com. “I think that’s more: you have to be by default, certainly, with a player with Walker’s intelligence and who knows his body.”
Los Angeles welcomed Clayton Kershaw back into the rotation on Saturday and allowed two runs in four innings in a 3-2 loss to the Giants. He lost about a month with a hip problem. The Dodgers should pick up Andrew Heaney soon, too. Heaney made two great starts to start the season before coming down with a shoulder problem. Losing Buehler for so long is a blow, no doubt, but the return of Kershaw and Heaney should help.