GLENDALE, Ariz. — As he goes through the long rehab process following his Tommy John surgery in August, Walker Buehler has the unique perspective of a previous Tommy John surgery and recovery to compare.
“I feel pretty good with where I’m at,” said the right-hander, who also underwent the ligament-replacement surgery shortly after he was drafted by the Dodgers in 2015.
“Really, I don’t remember a ton about how I felt or whatever (during the first rehab). But I feel good that we’re on track to throw right around that six-month mark. I know with the second one, that can kind of be a little bit longer process. But all the numbers and strength and all that seem to be where they need to be.”
Buehler should start his throwing program in the next two weeks with a limited number of tosses while playing catch. The biggest question for any pitcher rehabbing from a Tommy John surgery, however, is not how it’s going – but when will it end.
In Buehler’s case, the Dodgers hold out hope that Buehler could return to pitch before the end of the 2023 season. The standard recovery time for Tommy John surgery is 12 to 15 months. Dustin May had a relatively setback-free recovery from his May 2021 surgery and returned to a mound 14 months later in the Arizona Summer League, then made his first major-league start a month later on Aug. 20.
A return before the end of the 2023 season would put Buehler on the aggressive end of that 12-to-15-month window.
“The first time was a 12-month rehab kind of right on the nose, so I don’t see any reason not to kind of target that, right?” Buehler said. “I definitely hope I pitch this year. That’s certainly my plan and, I think barring any real setback, I don’t see why I wouldn’t be able to pitch.
“If it’s on the 15(-month end), then I probably won’t pitch this year. But that’s not my call. … I think in the grand scheme of it, it’s kind of the surgery’s decision. If I’m healthy and the timeline…
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