Oh, Walker Buehler,
What can I say?
You tease with talent,
Then you drift away.
Frustrations mount with every shaky start,
A fallen ace still clutching his part.
Now to the bullpen, a much humbler role,
To mend the cracks and steady the soul.
Perhaps from relief, your fire will grow,
And soon again, your true form will show.
I'm not just a sports writer, folks. I'm also a fan who's seen Boston Red Sox pitcher Walker Buehler at his best, and he has now completely fallen apart. Red Sox manager Alex Cora has just announced that Buehler will be in the bullpen, and doesn't like to "yo-yo" players around. This means that Buehler will be there most likely for the rest of the season, according to NESN.
Alex Cora on Walker Buehler's new role with the team
— NESN (@NESN) August 22, 2025
"[Walker Buehler's] going to go to the bullpen ... I still believe in him." pic.twitter.com/F683z8Cm0I
Red Sox Move Struggling RHP Walker Buehler to Bullpen
Buehler, when speaking of his entire career, was absolutely amazing. In his full rookie season in 2018 (he debuted in the bullpen in 2017), he made an immediate impact. He only went 8-5, but had only a 2.62 ERA with 151 strikeouts and an ERA+ of 148 (his second-highest in his career) in 137.1 innings pitched. Afterwards, he broke out even further into a superstar.
From 2019 to 2021, he had a combined ERA of 2.89, a total of 469 strikeouts, and went 31-8 in those three seasons with an ERA+ of 145. His highest ERA+ was a league-leading 178 in 2021, where he finished fourth in National League Cy Young Voting, behind Corbin Burnes, Zack Wheeler, and Max Scherzer.
Since then, he has experienced a downfall, and most of it was due to rotten luck. It started almost exactly three years ago, on Aug. 23, 2022. He had to undergo his second Tommy John surgery of his career. Usually, players can recover from a young age, which Buehler did the first time. But, at age 27, the arm has much more wear and tear from pitching constantly. He was never the same.
He showed some semblance of what he was last year's postseason, closing out the Fall Classic against the New York Yankees, and helped win the Los Angeles Dodgers their second World Series in five years. But now, after signing a dud of a one-year, $21 million deal, Cora has moved him to the bullpen for the final stretch of the season. In 22 games with the Red Sox, Buehler is 7-7 with a 5.40 ERA and minus-1.0 WAR.
Cora says he "still believes in him", and in a way, we all do. We just hope he'll find it.