Fresh off a start against the Los Angeles Dodgers with the Asian Breeze, Trevor Bauer is joining Diablos Rojos del México and will pitch against the New York Yankees on March 24.
He has agreed to pitch in five games between April 11 and May 8, serving as a nontraditional spring training in case an MLB team calls him.
I’ll be pitching against the @Yankees on March 24 as a member of the @diablosrojosmx. I’ve also agreed to pitch 5 games for the Diablos between April 11 and May 8 in lieu of a traditional spring training period as it’s the best way for me to stay ready to pitch. This will help me…
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) March 18, 2024
In his first action on MLB soil since his record-long 194-game suspension for violating MLB's domestic violence and sexual assault policy, he pitched three scoreless innings against his former club's minor league players on March 10. He peaked at 99 on the radar gun multiple times and struck out four of the 12 batters he faced.
"I just stay ready,'' Bauer said, "and maybe people somehow will remember that I'm still one of the best pitchers in the world.''
I was invited to @Dodgers spring training pic.twitter.com/gzdbMJiVtt
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) March 14, 2024
The former Cy Young Award winner is prepared to sign with any team that will have him and is hoping that dominating in these exhibition games will help. He hasn't pitched in Major League Baseball since 2021 when he was accused of sexual assault.
"I mean for those who saw me pitch,'' Bauer said, "I think it was pretty obvious I was still elite. Telling hitters what pitch was coming, and getting outs. I think anyone who was here could see that the stuff was elite. Command is there. Shapes are there. All that. ...
"I'm a better pitcher now than I was the last time people here saw me. Hopefully today reminded them that I'm still an elite pitcher.
"If not, that's fine too.''
His suspension was lifted and shortened during the 2023 season but that didn't stop the Dodgers from releasing him as he entered the final year of his three-year, $102 million contract. He has been a free agent for more than 420 days and ended up playing last season in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league for the Yokohama DeNa BayStars.
According to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times, Bauer has not ruled out returning to the BayStars if he goes unsigned this spring. Bauer also told him that he doesn't believe he was given a lifetime ban which is how it feels going unsigned for so long.
Any team can sign him, yet nobody has made an offer. He has no tryouts scheduled and plans to continue training in Arizona until someone changes their mind.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University ... Read more
