Phillies Should Take Chance On Walker Buehler Following His Release by Red Sox

Walker Buehler has not had a good season this year, but the Philadelphia Phillies should still take a flyer on him.

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The Philadelphia Phillies have a clear hole when it comes to their rotation.

With Zack Wheeler missing the rest of the year following a procedure to remove a blood clot and then a subsequent one upcoming to treat thoracic outlet syndrome, the need for a right-handed starter has become apparent.

The Phillies are hoping Aaron Nola can turn back the clock and find his past ace-level form, something that has been missing the past few seasons. But considering how he looked to start the year, nobody would be comfortable right now with the veteran starting an important playoff game.

However, there aren't many options Philadelphia can turn to at this point in the campaign, with the trade deadline in the rear view mirror and top prospect Andrew Painter continuing to struggle at the Triple-A level.

Waivers are the only way the Phillies can find themselves another arm, and it just so happens that someone with vast playoff experience has become available.

Red Sox Released Walker Buehler

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The Boston Red Sox made the surprising announcement on Aug. 29 that they had released Walker Buehler, the pitcher they signed this offseason to a lucrative one-year, $21.05 million deal. Because the Red Sox are in the midst of a playoff race, cutting ties with the veteran right-hander was something that caught the attention of the baseball world.

Buehler hasn't been great this season. With a 5.45 ERA and ERA+ that's well below the league average, Boston opted to move him into the bullpen to see if that could produce better results. He got an opportunity on Aug. 24, but after giving up two runs in 2 1/3 innings, the organization felt it was best to move on.

With contending teams across Major League Baseball looking for help anywhere they can get it when it comes to their pitching staffs, the 31-year-old is now one of the most interesting names who can be signed for the remainder of the season.

And when it comes to Philadelphia and their need for a right-handed pitcher, taking a chance on Buehler is something they should do.

Why Phillies Should Sign Walker Buehler

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At this stage of the season, the Phillies aren't going to find help from many places. So this opportunity is something that might be too big to pass up.

While Buehler's numbers haven't been great this season, he's coming off a playoff run with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year where he turned back the clock a bit. He made four appearances with three of them being starts. He allowed six earned runs on 10 hits across 15 innings pitched, striking out 13 batters and walking five.

Those aren't ace-level statistics by any means, but that's not what Philadelphia is going to find right now anyway. They need options when it comes to right-handed pitchers, and Buehler has the pedigree that suggests he could give them quality innings if everything goes right.

Of course, it's not clear if the veteran has anything left in the tank to reach that level. And when looking at how he's performed the past two seasons, it's hard to predict he can give a new team anything positive.

But he can't be worse than the two reclamation projects have been for Philadelphia this year, with Joe Ross recently getting released and Jordan Romano being atrocious throughout the season. And even though Buehler has not flashed high-end stuff since 2021 -- the campaign before he underwent his second Tommy John surgery -- adding him for the stretch run is worth a flyer.

If he goes unclaimed on waivers and becomes a free agent, the Phillies would only have to pay him a prorated league minimum salary to have him on their team for the remainder of the season, something that would be well worth it if he does have gas left in the tank.

Buehler has struggled this year and certainly won't replace Wheeler, but that doesn't mean Philadelphia shouldn't take a chance on the 2024 World Series champion as they look to put together a roster that can get themselves into the winner's circle this season.