Red Sox, Walker Buehler agree to one-year deal worth $21.05 million

The Los Angeles Dodgers opted not to offer a qualifying offer to Buehler, who pitched to a 5.38 ERA and 5.54 FIP over 16 starts last season after missing all of 2023 due to his second Tommy John surgery. He only made 12 starts in ’22, posting a 4.02 ERA and 3.80 FIP across 65 innings.

The 30-year-old righty battled a hip injury during his final campaign with the Dodgers, limiting him to 75.1 innings a season ago. He hasn’t logged more than 100 frames since his second of two All-Star performances in ’21, where he posted career-bests in ERA (2.47), games started (33), innings pitched (207.2) and fWAR (5.6).

Buehler’s swing-and-miss totals have trended in the wrong direction in the years since, with his strikeout rate plummeting to a career-low 18.6 per cent last season. Making matters worse, he registered the highest walk rate (8.1 per cent) of his career since becoming a full-time major league starter in ’18.

Still, the two-time World Series champion is coming off a respectable post-season run with Los Angeles, earning a 3.60 ERA and 13 strikeouts over four appearances (three starts) spanning 15 innings. He closed out Game 5 of the World Series versus the New York Yankees, tossing a perfect inning of work in relief with a pair of punchouts to secure the franchise’s eighth championship title.

If Buehler can stay healthy in 2025, he could prove to be a high-upside acquisition for the Red Sox, who made a blockbuster trade for left-hander Garrett Crochet earlier this winter. Both will join a talented staff that already includes Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello and Kutter Crawford.