BOSTON -- At the same time Red Sox righty Walker Buehler cited some improvement in delivery tweaks that he hopes will get him out of a brutal slump (and keep him in the starting rotation), the veteran acknowledged the gravity of his current situation following his team’s 5-3 loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday at Fenway Park.
Despite all he has accomplished in the game, including ownership of two World Series rings, does Buehler feel he is fighting to keep his rotation spot?
“Yeah, I think I'm fighting for my spot in the game honestly,” said Buehler. “I think at some point, the way that I’ve thrown, there’s not a lot of places for 7 ERA starting pitchers in the big leagues. I don’t know what the next step is, and obviously I want to take the ball every fifth day and keep going and keep fighting.”
Red Sox manager Alex Cora was asked if it was time to start thinking about Buehler’s spot in the rotation.
“Not right now,” Cora said.
On a day Buehler gave up four hits and four runs while walking three and striking out three on 72 pitches, his ERA swelled to 6.45.
Between the injuries and dropoff in performance -- other than his rejuvenation late in last year’s postseason -- the last four baseball seasons have been a test of patience for Buehler.
While he vowed to keep grinding until he figures it out, he acknowledged his opportunities with the Red Sox -- the team that signed him to a one-year, $21.05 million contract in December -- aren’t endless.
“At the end of the day, we have depth and talent in this organization and there are realities in this game,” Buehler said. “I’ll kind of keep going and keep trying to figure it out. I think I kind of owe that to my family and to myself, given the rehab that we go through, and what that does to you. I’m going to find it and have a run. I just don't know when or where that'll be.”
The current state of Boston’s rotation depth could be buying Buehler a little more time. Tanner Houck made his third ineffective Minor League rehab appearance on Sunday, giving up seven hits and four runs in 3 2/3 innings for Triple-A Worcester.
Righty Hunter Dobbins, who had been holding his own in his rookie season, is on the 15-day injured list with right elbow soreness, and his earliest eligibility to return is July 6. Kutter Crawford, who had ongoing right knee problems and then an off-field right wrist injury that will require surgery, isn’t likely to pitch in 2025.
“We’ve got a lot of people hurt, so we just have to get healthy,” said Cora.
As the July 31 Trade Deadline looms, one of chief baseball officer Craig Breslow’s top priorities figures to be adding another quality starter.
Meanwhile, Buehler will do his best to get back to being one.
Considering how bad his previous start went, when he gave up five runs in the bottom of the first inning after the Red Sox spotted him three in the top of the frame, Sunday’s performance represented an improvement.
After getting taken deep for back-to-back homers by Addison Barger and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the first inning, Buehler sent down 10 batters in a row, capped by a couple of strong defensive plays by Ceddanne Rafaela and Trevor Story to open the fourth inning.
But trouble surfaced in a big way, as an infield single by Nathan Lukes was the start of five straight batters reaching, including a bases-loaded walk that gave the Blue Jays a 4-2 lead.
“Obviously we’ve been working hard this week and kind of throughout the year, but I really think we're onto something with some of the mechanical stuff we're doing,” said Buehler. “And then the moment I kind of get into a pressure situation, it just kind of reverts.”
What is Buehler working on?
“Just trying to get my arm up,” Buehler said. “I think for years, going back to ’22, 23, 24, all through the rehab process, I’ve just gotten into some bad habits of … lazy is not the right word. But when I'm at my best, my elbow is really forward and my arm’s really high. And from ’22 through last year, it’s been low, and I think the spray pattern is bad.
“I think when I get my arm up, the ball acts a lot better and typically the past couple years it has been around 40 degrees. And when I was really good, it was 50. And so today it was in the 44 or 45 range, which is a big step forward, but also not where I want it to be.”