Los Angeles Dodgers starter Walker Buehler will undergo season-ending elbow surgery next week

The fading hopes of the Los Angeles Dodgers Their postseason cycle ended on Monday when it was announced that their starting pitcher would need season-ending elbow surgery. The Dodgers were vague on the description of Buehler’s injury because the initial MRI didn’t provide enough clarity, a source familiar with the situation said. The Dodgers won’t learn the specifics until Dr. Neil ElAtrach performs the procedure on Aug. 23.

What they do know, however, is that they will be without their most talented pitcher in their pursuit of a World Series title.

Despite dealing with a variety of injuries to their staff, the Dodgers boast the highest winning percentage and lowest ERA in the major leagues, with 11 pitchers currently on the injured list. But He is expected to return from Tommy John surgery on Saturday, and the team hopes Clayton Kershaw, who has been out since early August with lower back discomfort, can still make it in time for the playoffs. Grabbing the first-round bye, awarded to the two teams with the best records in each league under the new format, will certainly help his cause.

Buehler, 28, underwent Tommy John surgery shortly after Vanderbilt drafted him with the 24th overall pick in 2015. From 2018 to 2021, he established himself as one of the game’s top weapons, going 39-13 with a 2.82 ERA. ERA and 620 strikeouts in 564 regular season innings, while many of the Dodgers’ biggest postseason games came.

But Buehler got off to a relatively slow start in 2022, allowing eight runs in 6 1/3 innings in his first two June outings and being shut down by a flexor strain during which he had a bone spur removed from his right. Elbow. Buehler had 10 to 12 weeks to recover during the initial deadline, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters in Milwaukee on Monday that Buehler experienced unusual pain while playing catch, and an MRI ruled him out for good.

The Dodgers will start in October with Buehler gone, Kershaw soon removed from a back injury and May in the early stages of his return from major elbow surgery. Passed his previous career high in innings. And A revelation later in his first season in LA, probably relied heavily on.