PHOENIX — There were harmless grounders and confused swings against the curveball and slider. The cutter induced weak contact and efficiently ended at-bats. Even the changeup was key, leading to several punchouts on a career night for the Dodgers’ previously struggling ace.
After struggling with a fastball-heavy approach in his first three starts this year, Walker Buehler used his full arsenal to earn his first career shutout in the Dodgers’ 4-0 win against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday.
The right-hander pitched nine innings of three-hit ball. He struck out a season-high 10 batters, the 13th double-digit strikeout performance of his career. And he did it all by altering his pitch mix to perfection, keeping Diamondbacks hitters off balance and out of sync with all six of his weapons.
