Walker Buehler Scare: Red Sox $21 Million Man Facing Uncertainty

The Red Sox have some questions in front of them...

Apr 15, 2025; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Walker Buehler (0) throws a pitch in the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images | Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox’s starting rotation got hit with a question mark on Thursday.

Boston’s rotation finally seemingly took a step towards full health with Lucas Giolito making his team debut this week. But, just a day later, it was shared that Walker Buehler went back to Boston as he is dealing with some shoulder soreness and didn't bounce back the way he and the team wanted after his last start, as shared by MLB.com's Ian Browne.

"While the Red Sox were completing a three-game series in Toronto, Buehler was back in Boston undergoing tests," Browne shared. "'We're working on a few things regarding Walker. We’ll see where we’re at over the weekend,' said (Alex Cora). 'He hasn't bounced back the way we wanted, so we have to wait.'

After the game on Thursday night against the Toronto Blue Jays, there wasn't much more of an update, but The Athletic's Jen McCaffrey shared that by the end of the game Buehler's results were not quite clear and it wasn't clear also if he would need a stint on the Injured List.

"Though Cora later downplayed the testing as precautionary and the injury as something the club was not overly concerned about on WEEI’s pregame radio show, it still represents a worrisome development for a pitcher who had Tommy John surgery in 2022, missing all of 2023 and the start of 2024 as he rehabbed," McCaffrey shared.

"The results of Buehler’s tests had not returned by the end of the game, and Cora was uncertain whether Buehler would need time on the injured list. For now, Brayan Bello was moved up to start Friday with Garrett Crochet set to start Sunday. Saturday’s starter is to be determined."

So far this season, Buehler has made six starts and has a 4.28 ERA after signing a $21.05 million deal with Boston.

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