Little more than a week after it was revealed that Los Angeles Dodgers ace Walker Buehler would undergo season-ending elbow surgery, he did. Buehler underwent Tommy John surgery on Tuesday.
Buehler reported the news himself on Instagram.
This is Buehler’s second Tommy John surgery. His first came in 2015, shortly after he was drafted by the Dodgers in the first round of that year’s draft.
Even under normal circumstances, Buehler would likely miss not only the rest of 2022 but — given how late we are in the season — likely all of 2023, as well. Given that this is his second Tommy John surgery, missing all of 2023 is a virtual foregone conclusion.
The MLB world was disappointed for Buehler following this news.
Ah dang….even more of a bummer for Walker Buehler. https://t.co/PYM76aIukU
— Evan Barnes (@evan_b) August 23, 2022
This hurts. https://t.co/oQBcLUaOPw
— Smitty (@__VSmithII) August 23, 2022
Brutal https://t.co/yUWg1x5C5P
— Dan Graca (@DanGraca) August 23, 2022
If there’s good news for the Dodgers, it’s the standings. Los Angeles enters Tuesday’s action with a staggering 17.5-game lead over the San Diego Padres in the National League West and is 6.5 games clear of the New York Mets for the best record in the National League. So, in terms of postseason positioning in 2022, the Dodgers are fine.
That said, this is a big loss. Buehler is a big part of the Dodgers’ starting rotation. He was having something of a down year in 2022 but still had a 6-3 record with a 4.02 ERA, 1.292 WHIP and an 8.0 K/9 rate at the time of his injury. For his career, Buehler has a 46-16 record with a 3.02 ERA, 1.036 WHIP, and a 9.7 K/9 rate. Not having him in the rotation for the playoffs and the entire 2023 season will be a significant blow for Los Angeles to overcome.
[Walker Buehler on Instagram]