Prospect Buehler continues rapid rise through minors
One year ago, Walker Buehler sat in a Phoenix apartment sporting a common scar on his right elbow with thoughts of pitching in meaningful games.
Tommy John surgery a month after he was drafted No. 24 overall in 2015 had delayed his start within the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. He was going through the rehab process at Camelback Ranch.
Mentally, he was tired. His arm felt better than ever. Being one step from the big leagues within 12 months never crossed his mind.
But Thursday, he will take the mound at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark as the Dodgers’ rising prospect for his TripleA debut with Oklahoma City.
“It makes last year easy to swallow,” Buehler said before Monday’s series opener against Memphis.
“Where I was picked and having to delay yourself a year and delay the organization a year to get any return on the investment is tough, but hopefully this year has proved it’s worth it in the end for both sides.”
The Dodgers aren’t complaining.
Buehler, 22, has skyrocketed through Los Angeles’ farm system throughout the first half of the season — from Class-A Rancho Cucamonga to Double-A Tulsa and now to OKC — with 12.5 strikeouts per nine innings.
In that span, he went from No. 77 in early May to No. 17 in Baseball America’s midseason top 100 prospect rankings, which is fourth best for a pitcher. He’s now regarded as the Dodgers’ top pitching prospect.
That’s created a buzz around the organization.
“I think it’s impressive,” OKC pitching coach Matt Herges said. “I can’t wait to see it because I know that kind of arm from what I’ve seen in his bullpen, that kind of electricity that comes out of his hand, that plays anywhere.”
Herges had not seen Buehler throw until a pregame bullpen session Monday.
“It’s explosive,” Herges said. “Everything he throws — curveball, fastball, slider, even his changeup — is just explosive. So, the arm is elite. The characteristics of the pitch: elite.”
Buehler’s velocity is actually up from his Vanderbilt days. Then, he was throwing in the low 90s.
Now, he sits anywhere from 96 to 99 mph with movement. He also throws sharp sliders and curveballs as he works to regain his changeup.
That’s led to crazy strikeout totals like Saturday’s start for Tulsa. He struck out eight in 3
innings, reaching his 75-pitch limit.
“He’s got an unbelievable arm,” catcher Jack Murphy said. “He’s got one of those arms that you just don’t see very often.
“Obviously, there’s room for improvement, but just from a pure-talent standpoint I think it’s a pretty rare talent.”