Walker Buehler signed with the Red Sox because he believes the club is primed for a breakout, and if the right-hander has his way, he won’t be coming to Boston alone.

Walker Buehler says he's made a pitch to longtime friend, free agent third baseman Alex Bregman, about playing for the Red Sox.

If Walker Buehler had hit free agency after, say, the 2021 season when he posted a 2.47 ERA over 33 starts with the Dodgers, he likely would have commanded one of the biggest contracts for a pitcher in baseball history. That wasn’t the case. The 30-year-old’s first foray into the open market came at a much-different point in his career.