Although he won in double figures six times with the Braves, this fast worker pitched in the shadows of Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette in the 1950s. A paratrooper in Korea in 1952, Buhl broke in with the Braves in 1953 and went 13-8 (2.97).
In 1956 a fractured finger on his pitching hand in August kept him from winning 20; he finished 18-8. His herky-jerky motion caused arm problems, and though he missed a month in 1957, he went 18-7 (2.74 ERA) to help Milwaukee win the pennant.
Buhl was a famed Dodger-killer, beating them eight times in 1956 alone. After his April 1962 trade to the Cubs, his first Chicago victory came two days later against Los Angeles. He had a large repertoire of pitches and fielded well, but he was a notoriously poor hitter. In 1962 he went 0-for-70, the worst ML “0-fer” by a pitcher in a season. He hit .089 lifetime, striking out in 45% of his at-bats.
