Walker Buehler Hosts Golf Tournament To Benefit Childhood Cancer
All season long he did things on the baseball field to lift the Dodgers – and with the season over Walker Buehler is still doing great things. Comparatively, this will not go on the back of his baseball card; but it stands to show that the Dodgers ace-in-waiting is a quality person. Buehler hosted his inaugural golf tournament in Lexington, Kentucky at Marriott Griffin Gate Golf Club to benefit the Kids Cancer Alliance on Monday.
Lex native @buehlersdayoff, who pitched the World Series for the @Dodgers, hosted a golf outing to benefit @KidsCancerAlnce at @GriffinGateLex golf club @KentuckySports @heraldleader @markcstory @JPSaysHere @mlb @DodgerInsider @pbaniak @JerryTipton @johnclayiv @BenRobertsHL pic.twitter.com/FlPfwBHC5I
— Matt Goins (@MattGoinsPhotos) November 5, 2018
Of course, Monday was also the day that Buehler was named a finalist for the Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Award. Buehler is up for the award alongside Ronald Acuna Jr. and Juan Soto.
Walker Buehler Golf Outing Benefits Kids Cancer Alliance
Still – nothing trumps the passion that Buehler has for the cause at hand. Additionally, he had some quotes that spoke towards the importance of the event that will benefit kids with cancer.
“My uncle (Matthew Buehler) was a childhood cancer survivor and I luckily got to spend 12 years with him before he passed. He had Hodgkin’s lymphoma as a 12- and 13-year-old. That’s always been my passion if I was going to do something like this. Baseball’s always been pretty good to me and given me a platform to do something like this.
“We called him ‘Pig,’ Uncle Pig. There’s a long story about how he fell asleep under a tree. He was a smaller kid, obviously, because he had battled cancer. … His best friend was a linebacker on the football team, a big guy, and he called him ‘Piglet.’ So, as he grew older, everyone called him Pig. This one’s for him.”
Additional Quotes On The Season That Was
Furthermore, Buehler served up a few key quotes at the event in looking back at the 2018 season. For instance, does he think he will unseat incumbent Clayton Kershaw as the Dodgers’ ace?
“I think that’s a little silly. Kershaw’s one of the greatest to ever play the game. I’m just fortunate to play with him and pick up whatever I can from him.”
By the same token, Buehler spoke of his breakout season.
“It was obviously pretty cool and pretty special, surreal, I would say. I feel like I’m not going to really understand it for a couple of months, but in that organization, that’s what we expect to do. We want to finish it off in the next one.”
Uniquely, Buehler talked about pitching in the postseason:
“It’s crazy. There’s a few years there in high school I didn’t think I’d play college ball, being the size I am (a slender 6-foot-2), it would be a little hard to imagine (as a high schooler).
“Playing in L.A., you get used to playing in front of some big crowds, but the playoffs were different. It was pretty neat that I got put in those spots.
Alright, I absolutely love this guy. Los Angeles is a lucky organization to have Buehler on the roster – both the pitcher and the human being. It’s going to be a tough wait until next spring to see him make 35 starts.
Walker Buehler A Rookie of the Year Finalist