Padres just desperate enough to sign Walker Buehler

From one side of the rivalry to the other.

Maybe.

Walker Buehler agreed to a minor league deal with the Padres, hoping to make their Opening Day roster the rotation as a starter.

“It’s a really good opportunity to be a part of a talented ball club and looking forward to seeing what we can make of it,” he told reporters in Arizona on Tuesday morning while donning the brown and yellow Padres colors for the first time. “I think it’s the way I’ve viewed every spring, come in and try and make the team, contribute anyway I can. Obviously I’m a starter and want to start so here to try and make the rotation.”

It’s been a far fall from grace for the 31-year-old Buehler.

He was widely regarded as one of the better pitchers in baseball during his early years in Los Angeles, winning the 2020 World Series with the Dodgers while being named a two-time All-Star and having two top-10 finishes in Cy Young voting.

But injuries have greatly derailed his career.

He had Tommy John surgery in 2022, resulting in him missing the entire 2023 season. He returned in 2024 with the Dodgers but looked far from who he was pre-surgery. He posted a 5.38 ERA in 16 appearances, though he did close out the 2024 World Series against the Yankees.

He spent the majority of 2025 with the Red Sox, posting a 7-7 record and 5.45 ERA before he was designated for assignment.

The Phillies took a chance on Buehler late last season and he rewarded them with his best stretch of games since his early career years with the Dodgers. He went 3-0 in three appearances with a 0.66 ERA.

“I liked a lot of the stuff I was working on in Philadelphia, just kept throwing and working through some stuff,” he said. “I feel like the delivery is a lot closer to what it was kind of pre-’22. I threw the ball well over there, and getting the velocity back as well as the delivery has kind of been the big thing. The second half of last year was relatively successful compared to the first half.”

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Finally gaining some momentum going into this season after the way last year ended, Buehler tried to capitalize on that momentum by making small changes to his offseason program.

“My elbow and my body have kind of been through some stuff,” he said. “I kind of took a different approach and moved out here for the offseason, then got my body in a little better spot.”

Obviously there’s some stuff we want to build on there and get some of the velocity, the explosiveness, whatever you want to call it, back. But I took this offseason just a little bit different and I feel like it’s worked out well.”

Buehler’s signing comes at an ideal time for the Padres as they’re dealing with rotation issues heading into spring training in Arizona.

The Padres have a top three of Nick Pivetta, last year’s breakout star, Michael King, who signed a three-year, $25 million deal to return to the Padres after injuries limited him to 15 starts last season, and Joe Musgrove, who’s coming off Tommy John surgery. But the cupboard is pretty bare after that.

Randy Vásquez has the inside track on one of the final two spots in the rotation.

Yu Darvish, a staple of the San Diego rotation over the past five seasons, had elbow surgery in October and is out for the season. Other options include Kyle Hart and JP Sears.

Enter Buehler.

He’ll be awarded every opportunity to earn a spot in the Padres rotation. And if so, maybe he’ll open up about being on the other side of one of baseball’s best rivalries.

“Yeah it feels a little weird … obviously some familiarity with the division,” he said with a laugh. “I imagine five years ago it would’ve been a lot more weird but, this is a crazy game and this is a great opportunity for me to again be a part of a really talented baseball club. It’s what I’m here to do.”