Weeks earlier, when Buehler first returned from his second career Tommy John surgery, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts guessed it would take six or seven starts for the former All-Star to get his legs back under him. Two months, Roberts predicted, and Buehler should start looking more like his old self.
On the day of Buehler’s eighth start, however, Roberts’ tone had shifted.
Before Tuesday’s game, Roberts said he didn’t “want it to feel like there’s one particular number [of starts by when] everything has to click” for Buehler.
“I don’t think that’s fair, or realistic,” Roberts added.
Then, after watching Buehler give up seven runs in four innings to a lightweight Colorado Rockies lineup — and take a third-inning come-backer off his hip — Roberts indicated a break might be in the pitcher’s near future.
“Given how he’s feeling, how he’s throwing the baseball and what happened tonight with that liner off his hip, it’s certainly going to be a conversation,” Roberts said.
A day later, the decision was official.
Buehler was placed on the injured list Wednesday with a hip injury. His comeback season has suffered another setback.
“He’s still in search mode,” Roberts said. “So, as he’s getting back to health, I think for the mind and some clarity, I think this will be a good thing.”
(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
Technically, Buehler is being sidelined by a hip injury. Roberts said the pitcher had been dealing with right-hip discomfort in recent weeks (it required a mid-game visit from trainers last week).
The come-backer he took on his left side Tuesday caused the team further “concern,” Roberts said, even though it didn’t force Buehler out of the game.
“He’s had hip issues,” Roberts said of Buehler, whose placement on the IL also cleared a roster spot for the return of Bobby Miller. “It’s the right thing to do.”
Still, Buehler revealed Tuesday that the idea of a midseason break had been percolating recently as the 29-year-old’s struggles persisted.
“At some point, we’ve thought about kind of taking a blow, taking a month off, taking a week off, whatever,” Buehler said. “Trying to figure out how to get me reset.”
Buehler will get that chance now, with Roberts being careful Wednesday to not put a timeline on his return.
Part of that will depend on the health of Buehler’s hip. Equally important, though, will be the quality of Buehler’s stuff as he progresses through his rehab, with the Dodgers eager to see improved form before bringing him back to their big-league staff.
“It’s really hard to figure out or determine the timing [of when he might be back],” Roberts said. “Because the truth is, they all have to be lined up for it to make sense to bring him back. And that’s what Walker wants too.”