LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers welcomed Walker Buehler with the kind of support you hope to get from your colleagues when you’ve been out of the office for a while.
The Dodgers hit four homers in the first three innings and Buehler made his first start since June 2022 in a 6-3 win over the Miami Marlins on Monday night.
It was the Dodgers’ fifth straight victory and 12th in their last 14 games, a dominant stretch that saw them outscore their opponents 99-28.
In those 14 games, the Dodgers hit 25 home runs. Even with all those long balls, the Dodgers managed to give them some new wrinkles. Max Muncy had the first three-homer game of his career on Saturday. That was followed by Shohei Ohtani’s first two-homer game as a Dodger on Sunday.
First up on Monday were back-to-back home runs by Ohtani and Freddie Freeman in the first inning, the Dodgers’ first back-to-back homers this season.
Named National League Player of the Week last week, Ohtani added an eighth day to the week. His 441-foot missile launch in the first inning Monday (after a walk by Mookie Betts) was his fourth in a nine-at-bat span extending into Saturday night and extended a consecutive hitting streak to six.
Mired in a 3-for-28 free fall, James Outman showed signs of life with his first homer since April 9, another two-run shot in the second inning. And in the third, Teoscar Hernandez sent a solo shot into the left-field pavilion, the fourth homer in the first 15 batters Marlins starter Roddery Munoz faced.
The main attraction, however, was Buehler’s first major league start since June 10, 2022.
Over the next 23 months, Buehler underwent, rehabilitated and recovered from surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his throwing elbow as well as Tommy John surgery (his second) with the new bracing technique.
Buehler hit 97.6 mph with a fastball in the first inning, allaying any concerns about how much velocity returned during his six adrenaline-deficient minor league rehab starts.
But Buehler’s game is still rough around the edges. He allowed two runs on three hits in his first inning, getting two strikes on four of the six batters he faced, but not getting his first strikeout until the ninth batter of the second inning. Nick Gordon led off this inning with a solo home run, his ball against the wall in right field coming out of Andy Pages’ glove as Pages reached over the scoreboard.
Buehler began to find his feet in the third and fourth innings, striking out three and allowing just one extra base hit. The Dodgers had projected a pitching range of 80–85 for Buehler’s return and manager Dave Roberts pulled him after 77 pitches in four innings.
Buehler allowed three runs on six hits, did not walk a batter and struck out four.
Ryan Yarbrough, Blake Treinen and Alex Vesia combined for five scoreless innings in relief of Buehler, with Vesia getting the first save opportunity since Evan Phillips went on injured reserve.
More to come on this story.
Shohei Ohtani.
You, sir, are HOT. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/6wpUd3zQPp
– SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) May 7, 2024
Back to back dingers for the lead role! 💣 pic.twitter.com/1hY4EzJwTu
– SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) May 7, 2024
James Outman puts the Dodgers back in front! pic.twitter.com/kRnzQ8aZRm
– SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) May 7, 2024
When the outfielder doesn’t even move, you know he’s been CRUSHED!pic.twitter.com/Az6RR5Zblu
– SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) May 7, 2024
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