Having made a comeback in the Japanese pro baseball league, Trevor Bauer hopes to return to the Major League. Having failed to find his own team, Bauer will play in a practice game against a minor league team of the Los Angeles Dodgers that released him a year ago.
Japanese media Nikan Sports said on the 7th, “Trevor Bauer, who aims to return to the Major League under a free contract from Yokohama DeNA, will take the mound against the Dodgers.”
A game between the Dodgers’ minor league team and the “Asian Breeze” will be held at the Dodgers camp in Glendale, Arizona, on the 11th. Bauer is expected to start for Asian Breeze and throw about three innings.
Asian Breeze is a team that operates temporarily during the spring camp. Based in Phoenix, Arizona, the team will hold practice matches with Major League teams through mid-March and aim to sign professional contracts with its players. Nikkan Sports said it is the best tryout program that opens the door to the world.
Coincidentally, Bauer was released by the Dodgers in January 2023, taking the mound against the Dodgers” minor league team.
Bauer has won 10 games for the Cleveland Indians for the fifth consecutive year since 2015, and he was 5-4 with a 1.73 ERA and 100 strikeouts in 11 games for the Cincinnati Reds in the 2020 shortened season. He won the Cy Young Award along with the No. 1 ERA in the National League. 퀸알바
Bauer, who became an FA, signed a three-year, $102 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In his first year as a Dodgers transfer, Bauer had eight wins and five losses with a 2.59 ERA through early July.
However, after being sued by a woman for sexual assault, he was excluded from the list of restricted players. Eventually, the 2021 season ended without returning to the team. The MLB Secretariat suspended Bauer for 324 games in 2022. This is equivalent to two seasons of the 162-game MLB system.
Bauer was not indicted due to lack of evidence, and Bauer appealed the MLB Secretariat’s disciplinary action. Bauer’s suspension was reduced to 194 games in December 2022. Bauer, who has not played in the entire 2022 season since mid-2021 season, will be available from the 2023 season.
However, the Dodgers decided to release Bauer in January 2023. He still had one year left on his contract, but he did so at a cost of $34 million a year. With controversy over his sexual assault, Bauer was unsuccessful in signing with any club.
Bauer moved to Japan and signed a one-year contract with Yokohama. Bauer made a comeback with Yokohama last year, posting 10-4 losses with a 2.76 ERA in 19 appearances. He has won two monthly MVPs.
After the end of the season, not only Yokohama but other Japanese clubs also wanted to renew his contract with Bauer, but Bauer is seeking to return to the Major League. He is very enthusiastic about the deal, saying that if he signs a contract with a Major League club, he will even accept the minimum salary of 740,000 U.S. dollars. Several clubs have negotiated with Bauer, but he has yet to hear of his contract.
It will be an opportunity to appeal to Major League Baseball teams, even though they have played in one game. Meanwhile, Yokohama is still waiting for Bauer in hopes of renewing his contract.