Emotional Dodgers fans react to Walker Buehler's official departure from LA

The Dodgers officially said goodbye to Walker Buehler on Monday, when the details of his one-year, $21.05 million deal with the Red Sox were announced. Buehler's departure seemed inevitable, especially after LA added Blake Snell to the rotation which, barring another wave of pitching injuries in 2025, could give the Dodgers up to seven usable starters at some point during the season.

But Buehler seemed, at one point, like he was going to anchor the Dodgers rotation for years to come. He's a completely homegrown Dodger who placed third in NL Rookie of the Year voting for his 2.62 ERA 2018 season, then followed it up with a year when he led the National League in win-loss percentage, pitched two complete games, got his first All-Star nod, and received Cy Young votes.

He's also the guy who closed out the 2024 World Series for the Dodgers, adding another moment to a highlight reel already full of postseason greatness, and the guy who swapped jerseys with Orel Hershiser during LA's first World Series parade since 1988.

No matter how clumsy his last regular season with the Dodgers was, fans are still rightfully mourning the fact that he's moving on.

Walker Buehler tributes pour in from Dodgers fans after his departure for the Red Sox

Buehler was instrumental during the Dodgers' 2020 postseason run, when he pitched 25 innings from the Wild Card through the World Series for a 1.80 ERA. His Game 3 start during the Fall Classic was a monumental six-inning effort, when he gave up just one run and struck out 10 en route to a 6-2 win that allowed the Dodgers to pull ahead in the series.

In 2024, he got off on the wrong foot during the postseason in Game 3 of the NLDS, when he gave up six runs to the Padres in the second inning.

However, the next 13 October innings went completely scoreless, and his legend grew when he headed out to the bullpen during Game 5 of the World Series to warm up and take the final inning himself, despite having pitched five innings just two days prior.

That Yankee-killing instinct must've turned him into a new kind of beast during the World Series, because he's going to get a lot more opportunities against New York in Boston. It's only a one-year deal and there's always a chance that he finds way back to LA in the future, but for now, Dodgers fans can only wish him the very best.