As crazy as it may have sounded at the start of the 2024 MLB season, the Los Angeles Dodgers wouldn't have won the World Series without Walker Buehler.

Originally drafted by the team with the 24th overall selection of the 2015 MLB Draft, Buehler had season-ending Tommy John surgery in August of 2022 that cost him the entire 2023 MLB season, leading some to wonder how well he would play for the team in 2024.

After some initial struggles in 2024, Buehler rehabbed a hip injury over the summer in the minors before returning to the team heading into the fall. Though his ERA was still high, in the mid-5s, Buehler really came into his own in the playoffs, putting in work in the NLCS and World Series before throwing the final inning of Game 5 that sent LA home as the champions.

And now, as the Dodgers travel East to Boston for a showdown against his new team, the Red Sox, Buehler was finally awarded the prize for his hard work, getting his World Series ring and a championship jersey in a special moment with his former teammates.

Despite his status as a certified Dodgers legend for bringing home that ninth inning, Buehler ultimately left the team in free agency for the Red Sox, signing a deal worth more than $21 million to become a starter for the team. While that move hasn't worked out great, as Buehler has the worst ERA of his career since his rookie season, he does have a .500 win/loss record, going 6-6 in his 17 appearances for the team so far, including a win over the Washington Nationals on July 5.

With the Red Sox reportedly taking a long look at Dalton Rushing as the MLB trade deadline rapidly approaches, could Buehler make his way back to Los Angeles? Maybe, assuming it's part of a much larger deal headlined by a player like Jarren Duran, but even if he never wears a Dodgers uniform again, Buehler will forever be a legend in Blue and White, and has the World Series ring to prove it.

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