MLB Rumors: Revealing the reason behind the Dodgers not making a $21.05 million qualifying offer to Walker Buehler, sparking outrage among fans

Can the Dodgers keep Walker Buehler even after they decided not to tender him a qualifying offer?

Dodgers' Walker Buehler holding the 2024 World Series trophy, with question marks all over and money falling from the sky

Amid all the injury woes that ravaged the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2024, it was Walker Buehler, who has gone through plenty of injury problems of his own in the past, that stepped up as one of their best performers in the postseason.

In fact, Buehler was the one who closed out Game 5 of the World Series, although it did require him to tell a bit of a lie just so he could get on the mound.

Buehler could not have picked a better time to show the MLB world that he still has plenty of gas left in the tank, as he headed into free agency after a successful World Series run with the Dodgers in 2024. But even though he stepped up for LA, the team decided not to tender him a qualifying offer worth $21.05 million.

At first glance, it may seem as though the Dodgers simply chose not to offer this to Buehler due to their belief that he is not worth that much on the open market. But Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote that the Dodgers wanted to make Buehler’s life in free agency much easier, as tying him down to a qualifying offer would have taken a lot of agency away from him.

“The Dodgers did not want to force the issue with Buehler,” Rosenthal wrote. “The qualifying offer would have damaged Buehler in the market, leaving him with almost no choice but to accept.”

While accepting a huge $21.05 million contract for one year is not the worst outcome for Buehler, tendering a qualifying offer simply was not worth it for the Dodgers either way.

“The Dodgers, as a team that will pay the luxury tax, only would have received a pick after the fourth round if he rejected. This way, Buehler can negotiate a multiyear deal with the team of his choosing,” Rosenthal added.

Will Walker Buehler stay with the Dodgers?

Walker Buehler had the trust of the entire Dodgers roster, believing that he will deliver for the team at a time when they need him the most. And that is what he did — perhaps in his swan song for the team.

The Dodgers signed Blake Snell to a five-year, $182 million deal earlier this offseason, adding him to a rotation that already has Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Gavin Stone, while they are expected to bring back veteran Clayton Kershaw as well.

Shohei Ohtani will be returning to the mound soon, too.

And with Buehler expected to angle for a multi-year deal given his injury-riddled past, it may be time for the Dodgers to bid farewell to the 30-year-old starter.