Feeling 'more settled,' Buehler looks like old self in ace-level showing

LOS ANGELES -- After missing almost two full years, Walker Buehler made his return to the mound 12 days ago. But Buehler was officially back on Saturday.

Nobody expected Buehler, who underwent a second Tommy John surgery in 2022, to look like his old self right out of the gates. That was the case, as Buehler struggled at times in both of his first two outings. But the Dodgers were adamant that those early bumps were part of his road back.

In the Dodgers’ 4-0 win over the Reds at Dodger Stadium, they watched the Buehler that turned himself into the staff ace before the injury, as the right-hander struck out seven and allowed just three hits over six scoreless innings.

“I haven’t won a game in the Major Leagues in almost two years. It’s big,” Buehler said. “I think especially the way that it happened where it was very, like, controlled and kind of command-based and still to have some punch in there, I think is huge for me going forward.”

After his second start in San Diego, Buehler knew he needed to get back to the drawing board. Buehler solicited the advice of pitching coach Mark Prior, assistant coach Connor McGuiness and bullpen coach Josh Bard. Those conversations ultimately helped Buehler decide to move from having just his toes on the rubber to his entire foot.

That change, Buehler said, helped him get some better command while also not drastically compromising his velocity. On Saturday, behind all six of his pitches, Buehler got eight whiffs, which tied what he got in his season debut against the Marlins on May 6.

Moving forward, Buehler and the Dodgers believe there will be even more swing and miss for Buehler. But on Saturday, all that mattered was that he got a lot of weak contact. The Reds’ offense had just one hard-hit ball (95 mph or harder) off Buehler through six innings.

“Buehler made for a tough at-bat,” said Reds manager David Bell. “He throws six different pitches, all for strikes. I know he had been out for a while, and we haven’t seen him for a long time. That was kind of back to where he once was to us.”

To Bell’s point, Buehler showed flashes of the old him, especially in the fifth inning after a misplay in the outfield by Andy Pages and Miguel Vargas helped the Reds get a baserunner on third and only one out. In the past, those were the situations Buehler lived for. More often than not, he was going to test opposing hitters with overpowering fastballs.

In his first time dealing with such a scenario this season, Buehler geared back and threw two fastballs to Jeimer Candelario, getting him to pop up to Will Smith behind the plate. He then got Jonathan India to ground out weakly on a pair of sinkers.

“It kind of gets you back going and for me, every time that I can do that and be successful is such a big thing, being out as long as I was,” Buehler said. “I don’t want to say that it’s kind of back to business as usual or whatnot, but I definitely feel a lot more settled in terms of where I’m at.”

Perhaps most impressive for Buehler has been his willingness to adapt. Given the success he’s had in the past, it would be understandable for him to be stubborn or reluctant to change. He joked that “it sucks so much” to have to listen to people now, such as regarding where to stand on the rubber.

“Tonight, you saw a guy who was a baseball player,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “He was using his entire pitch mix. He wasn’t overthrowing. He was in control and command the entire night.”

While both the Dodgers and Buehler had expressed confidence that he would soon find his way, nobody really knows until it happens again. A second Tommy John surgery, while much more common over the last five years, is still one of the most difficult things to come back from as a pitcher.

You wouldn’t have been able to tell given how Buehler pitched on Saturday. It looks different, but in a good way. He can now say he’s finally back.

“A healthy Walker Buehler, that’s huge for us,” said Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. “It’s been a long road back for him and just whatever happens down the road, so be it. But if we can get a healthy Walker, that’s huge for us.”