<img alt="Los Angeles Dodgers v Atlanta Braves" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IvJ9kvXZ0fwJnzX_DremFEQszBc=/161x0:4187x2684/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73726030/2171585035.0.jpg">
Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images
The former Dodgers hurler has been linked to the Braves via free agency. So it appears that we’re actually going to get some free agent rumors involving the Atlanta Braves this season. While the Braves have definitely been active in recent offseasons, it’s usually been the Braves themselves breaking the news of whatever move that they’ve just made. The team itself has been used to turning the rumor mill themselves by actually making the moves and letting everybody else respond to them.
Instead, we’ve had a few rumors involving the Braves so far in the offseason. Earlier, the team was rumored to be pursuing free agent starter Nathan Eovaldi and now it appears that they’re interested in another free agent hurler: Walker Buehler.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi is the one linking the Braves to Buehler, as Atlanta appears to be one of the early suitors for the former Dodgers starter.
2024 was a rough season for Buehler, as he finished with an ERA- of 133 and a FIP- of 134 with -0.2 fWAR over 16 starts and 75.1 innings pitched in this most recent season. With that being said, this was Buehler’s first season back from recovering from Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career. Before his most recent Tommy John surgery, Buehler had established himself as one of the top pitchers in the Dodgers rotation and had racked up a pair of 5 fWAR season in 2019 and 2021 where his ERA- and FIP- were in the 60s and 70s.
The obvious hope for the Braves (and every other team that’s pursuing him) is that Buehler will be able to bounce back and return to the form that he had before he missed the entirety of the 2023 season. The Braves themselves got a tiny glimpse of it back on September 15, which is when Buehler went six innings and only gave up one earned run (two overall) in the process. He also pitched six shutout innings back on May 18 against the Reds in what ended up being his best start of 2024.
Still, it’s been three years since Buehler reached his peak production and three years in baseball time may as well be an eternity. That (combined with his poor performance in 2024) is likely why MLB Trade Rumors is projecting that he’ll probably only be able to pick up a one-year deal as he enters into free agency this offseason.
If that ends up being the case, then a one-year deal with around $14-16 million AAV on a potential bounce-back candidate seems like the type of starting pitcher deal that would be right up Alex Anthopoulos’s alley. The Braves are definitely in search of starting pitching since Spencer Strider won’t be back until maybe a month-or-two into the season and they could potentially be going without both Max Fried and Charlie Morton in 2025. If Buehler returns to form in 2025 then he could command a pretty penny upon his return to the free agency market — or he could pitch himself into yet another contract extension from the Braves. Either way, it’s easy to see the fit for the Braves considering what their need is. Whether or not they’ll actually make a serious pursuit remains to be seen.
<img alt="Los Angeles Dodgers v Atlanta Braves" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IvJ9kvXZ0fwJnzX_DremFEQszBc=/161x0:4187x2684/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73726030/2171585035.0.jpg">
Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images
The former Dodgers hurler has been linked to the Braves via free agency. So it appears that we’re actually going to get some free agent rumors involving the Atlanta Braves this season. While the Braves have definitely been active in recent offseasons, it’s usually been the Braves themselves breaking the news of whatever move that they’ve just made. The team itself has been used to turning the rumor mill themselves by actually making the moves and letting everybody else respond to them.
Instead, we’ve had a few rumors involving the Braves so far in the offseason. Earlier, the team was rumored to be pursuing free agent starter Nathan Eovaldi and now it appears that they’re interested in another free agent hurler: Walker Buehler.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi is the one linking the Braves to Buehler, as Atlanta appears to be one of the early suitors for the former Dodgers starter.
2024 was a rough season for Buehler, as he finished with an ERA- of 133 and a FIP- of 134 with -0.2 fWAR over 16 starts and 75.1 innings pitched in this most recent season. With that being said, this was Buehler’s first season back from recovering from Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career. Before his most recent Tommy John surgery, Buehler had established himself as one of the top pitchers in the Dodgers rotation and had racked up a pair of 5 fWAR season in 2019 and 2021 where his ERA- and FIP- were in the 60s and 70s.
The obvious hope for the Braves (and every other team that’s pursuing him) is that Buehler will be able to bounce back and return to the form that he had before he missed the entirety of the 2023 season. The Braves themselves got a tiny glimpse of it back on September 15, which is when Buehler went six innings and only gave up one earned run (two overall) in the process. He also pitched six shutout innings back on May 18 against the Reds in what ended up being his best start of 2024.
Still, it’s been three years since Buehler reached his peak production and three years in baseball time may as well be an eternity. That (combined with his poor performance in 2024) is likely why MLB Trade Rumors is projecting that he’ll probably only be able to pick up a one-year deal as he enters into free agency this offseason.
If that ends up being the case, then a one-year deal with around $14-16 million AAV on a potential bounce-back candidate seems like the type of starting pitcher deal that would be right up Alex Anthopoulos’s alley. The Braves are definitely in search of starting pitching since Spencer Strider won’t be back until maybe a month-or-two into the season and they could potentially be going without both Max Fried and Charlie Morton in 2025. If Buehler returns to form in 2025 then he could command a pretty penny upon his return to the free agency market — or he could pitch himself into yet another contract extension from the Braves. Either way, it’s easy to see the fit for the Braves considering what their need is. Whether or not they’ll actually make a serious pursuit remains to be seen.
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