When Dodgers manager Dave Roberts informed the media that right-hander Walker Buehler had been optioned to Single-A Rancho Cucamonga last Friday, it raised a few eyebrows. Generally, in fact nearly always, when a Dodger player is still under team control and has options remaining, he is sent back down to Triple-A Oklahoma City, not Single-A Rancho Cucamonga.

From a logistical standpoint it made perfect sense, with Rancho Cucamonga being less than 50 miles away from Dodger Stadium. But you would think that if a guy is working his way back from an injury – as is Buehler – they would want him to face guys who are closer to being MLB-ready, as opposed to guys who, in many cases, are still in their teens.

It wasn’t until Tuesday afternoon that it was finally announced that Buehler had not been optioned at all. Instead, he had been placed back on the disabled list for a rib microfracture he suffered when struck by a 108 mph line drive comebacker during a game against the Colorado Rockies on May 21. Buehler, as you recall, remained in that game for seven innings and allowed only two hits. Unfortunately, he did not figure in the decision in the eventual 2-1 loss.

Dodgers right-hander Walker Buehler said that he felt “fine” after his rehab outing with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes on Tuesday evening at LoanMart Field. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

The former Vanderbilt University Commodore would go on to make three additional starts, winning two of them with a no-decision in the third. But when the discomfort in his rib area did not improve, the 23-year-old Lexington, Kentucky native and Dodgers 2015 first-round draft pick had a scan and X-rays taken, and it was learned that he had, amazingly, been pitching with a rib microfracture and was immediately placed on the 10-day disabled list on June 12 (retroactive to June 9).

The hard-throwing right-hander – with a fastball that consistently hits 97-98 mph – was activated from the DL on June 28 and was scheduled to make a rehab start with the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers. But a gametime decision changed all of that and he was brought in behind Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw, who himself was working himself back from the DL for a lower back strain, in a game against the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium.

It did not go well.

Buehler entered the game in the top of the sixth inning with the Dodgers holding onto a precarious 3-1 lead. He promptly gave up two runs for the blown save. He came back out for the seventh inning and allowed a double, a walk, and an RBI double without recording an out. Unfortunately his replacement, Dodgers right-hander Erik Goeddel, allowed his inherited runner to score on a two-run home run by Cubs shortstop Addison Russell, thereby tagging Buehler with his second loss of the season against his four wins.

The following day, June 29, the announcement came from Roberts that Buehler had been optioned to Single-A Rancho Cucamonga to, in Roberts’ words, “Build up his innings.”

On Tuesday night before a sold out LoanMart Field crowd of 4,902, Buehler began building those innings when he made his first start since June 8 for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes against the Inland Empire 66ers (Angels). And even though he was under a strict predetermined limit of three innings or 45 pitches, he was pleased with his three plus innings, during which he allowed one run on two hits (including a triple) while walking one and striking out five of the 12 batters faced; doing so on 41 pitches of which 30 were strikes.

“Good, I felt good,” Buehler said, when asked the obvious first question of how he felt physically. “I executed some good pitches and move forward from there.”

When asked if he had experienced any discomfort at all with his ribs, he was a bit more specific.

“No… I mean, compared to where a few weeks ago, a world of difference, and I feel good,” he answered.

As for the outing itself, Buehler felt good about it as well.

“Yeah. Obviously my last outing in the big leagues was not the way we wanted it to happen,” Buehler said. “You know, step back and move forward and take and improve and get back to where I was, and I feel tonight was a step up in that direction.”

When the Dodgers elected to have Buehler make his ‘rehab outing’ during the major league game on June 28 instead of sending him out to Oklahoma City (or Double-A Tulsa, or even Rancho Cucamonga, for that matter), it too raised a few eyebrows, as this is generally not how it’s done … unless you’re Clayton Kershaw, of course.

But 23-year-old Walker Buehler is not 30-year-old future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw, at least not yet, anyway. As such, and if he had it to do over again, would Buehler choose the other (normal) option of doing a minor league rehab instead?

“That’s kind of the beauty of this organization, we made that decision as a unit and I was asked,” Buehler said. “And we made the decision and we moved forward. It didn’t work out the way we wanted and that’s okay, we’re all on the same page.

“I mean, if we ever have to do it again, hopefully it will work out better,” he added.

Following his abbreviated start on Tuesday, Buehler went down to the Quakes bullpen and tossed another simulated inning to work on that “build up his innings” thing.

“I went 18 or 20 [pitches] or so, another inning basically,” Buehler said.

There was one concern during Buehler’s outing on Tuesday evening – his fastball velocity. As noted, Buehler is usually in the 97-98-mph range. On Tuesday, however, he hit 96 only once, while consistently being in the 94 to 95-mph range. Is this where he had hoped/expected to be in the first of what figures to be three rehab starts?

“Yeah. I mean I’m going to have to go back and look at kind of the numbers that we have and stuff,” Buehler said. “But I feel like the ball was coming out of my hand fine and the off-speed stuff was sharp, so that’s really the big thing.”

So, where to from here? What’s the plan now?

“I’m not sure, I guess I’m going to have to talk to the guys tomorrow and kind of figure it out, but it’s kind of out of my hands at this point,” Buehler answered. “I assume probably one more outing, whether that’s here, or a sim game, or in Triple-A, I don’t know. But I think probably one more outing and then see what happens.”

Although the where might be uncertain, the when probably is not. On normal rest, Buehler’s next start is scheduled for Sunday, July 8. On that day the Dodgers will be in Anaheim facing the Angels, the Oklahoma City Dodgers at home against the Round Rock Express (Rangers), the Tulsa Drillers at home against the Frisco RoughRiders (Rangers), and the Quakes in San Jose against the San Jose Giants (Giants).