Sports

What’s Next for Trevor Bauer’s MLB Career After Dodgers Release



Last Trevor Bauer take the mound, he seems to have reached the pinnacle of his pitching career. In the summer of 2021, the talent that made him the pick in the first round and the curiosity that unlocks the advanced training regiments finally converged. He is the defending Cy Young Award champion who ranks among the highest earners and best performers in his profession, a legitimate ace of one of the pitchers most famous of this sport. Then everything changed.

And now it’s fair to wonder if Bauer’s major league career might be over.

The Dodgers Los AngelesAfter much deliberation than many had anticipated, it was assured that Bauer’s career would not continue with their organization. They assigned Bauer to Friday’s missiontwo weeks after he suspended According to Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy is cut from 324 to 194 games. Bauer is expected to remove the exemptions and officially become a free agent next Friday. fugitives will have to pay $22.5 million in Bauer’s 2023 salary but would save $720,000 if another team signed him for the minimum. And now the key question is: Can any team do it?

Industry perspective, if it can be summed up in one sentence: Not sure, but not impossible.

ESPN surveyed about two dozen agents and office executives over the past month in an effort to gauge Bauer’s potential free agency market, and the answer isn’t much different from that. The most common response closely resembles what a rival general manager explicitly stated in a text message on the night of December 22, shortly after an independent arbitrator ruled that Bauer – had serve a 144-match sentence in 2022 – will be paid for the first 50 games of the 2023 season but will be restored immediately.

“I don’t expect anyone to sign him,” GM wrote.

Bauer’s punishment was finally reduced by 40%, but The arbitrator spent eight months reviewing the findings and hearing the testimony nonetheless ruled that he deserved the longest suspension under the domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy agreed to by MLB and the MLB Players Association in August 2015.

Bauer, 31, is the 16th player to be suspended under that policy and the first to have more than one publicly known whistleblower. He had three — the woman in San Diego who triggered the MLB investigation, accusing Bauer of essentially going too far in consensual rough sex, and Two other women also made similar allegations for the Washington Post.

“Nobody touched that guy,” an agent told ESPN recently. “No chance.”

But the possibility has been raised by a number of agents and executives with whom ESPN spoke in recent weeks, before and after the cuts were announced. Bauer is still just 32 next month, with a strong arm and an outstanding track record. And soon, except for the unlikely scenario of the Dodgers finding a commercial partner, Bauer could have a major league minimum wage — at a time when free agency deals go through. Roof and pitchers start from the top, reliable as ever.

“I think there will be teams that will at least be interested,” said another agent.

“Some teams will just grab the arm,” added one office executive, “and they’ll deal with the aftermath later.”

The Houston Astros by Jeff Luhnow also takes a similar approach, drawing the more prominent Roberto Osuna from Toronto blue jay in July 2018, less than three months after he was arrested for allegedly assaulting the mother of his child. The Cleveland Browns traded for star quarterback Deshaun Watson in March 2022 and later signed him to a record deal, though more than two dozen women have filed lawsuits against him for sexual misconduct. Talent often trumps morality, and professional sport has plenty of examples.

Still, Bauer will present a unique challenge to a potential new employer, according to a rival executive. As he described it, it wasn’t just a stain on an organization’s reputation or the backlash from fans or the negativity surrounding the organization — but Bauer showed no sign of remorse. during this process. In fact, he took the opposite approach, fight vehemently against all charges.

“If you contract someone with that kind of luggage,” one employee noted, “you have to guide him on a reclamation tour. And I don’t think he can train for that.”

In that regard, Bauer’s public reaction to the arbitration award spoke for itself — just a short tweet, consisting of 18 words and two emojis.

That’s the encapsulation of how Bauer approached the sexual assault allegations that were made against him; a reminder that he doesn’t care and doesn’t feel obligated to explain his mistakes or apologize to those who have been hurt by his actions. It also hints at what’s to come – an uncertain major league future for a man who doesn’t believe it should be questioned.

Suspensions during Bauer’s time are extremely rare in the MLBPA’s 56-year history, which has provided players with an avenue to combat life-time bans often introduced in previous decades.

Jenrry Mejia received a permanent ban in 2016 for repeatedly testing positive for PED, although he was reinstated two years later. Dwight Gooden and Steve Howe were suspended for more than a year for drug and alcohol related problems. Alex Rodriguez, Robinson Cano, Marlon Byrd, Francis Martes, Cody Stanley and Pascual Perez have all received 162-match bans for their PED involvement. Sam Dyson was also given a 162-match ban for violating the domestic violence policy in March 2021. Bauer has since come out on top, becoming one of only three active players in the last half-century – along with Mejia and Gooden – awarded suspension beyond one season.

That is the history that Bauer is dealing with.

That is the history that future pursuers will have to take into account.

Looks like no one would take the risk, but in the words of one GM:

“All it takes is one team.”

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