After missing all of 2022 and 144 games officially due to suspension, it was announced that Trevor Bauer has been reinstated after arbitrator Martin F. Scheinman reduced it from 324 to just 194 games.
For Bauer, who has not pitched on a Major League mound since June of 2021, a decision regarding his future with the Los Angeles organization, who will owe the right-hander $22 million regardless if he is on their team or not, has to be made by January 6, 2023.
The 2020 Cy Young Award winner, who will turn 32 in January, is rumored to be released by L.A. in the coming weeks.
Regardless of what happens pertaining to Bauer’s future with the Dodgers, the former rotational piece took to Twitter to share his excitement for returning to the Major Leagues.
The 2023 season Vlog is going to be 🔥🔥! Can’t wait to see y’all out at a stadium soon!
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) December 23, 2022
Bauer’s agent Rachel Luba, and attorneys Jon Fetterolf and Shawn Holley shared their thoughts on his outlook.
“While we are pleased that Mr. Bauer has been reinstated immediately, we disagree that any discipline should have been imposed. That said, Mr. Bauer looks forward to his return to the field, where his goal remains to help his team win a World Series,” they said in a joint statement.
Bauer, who was originally selected as the third overall pick by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2011 MLB Draft, could certainly find himself on a mound in 2023. If released by the Dodgers, the question would become if a team was willing to take a chance to sign the right-handed pitcher, and would that team be a championship contender.
Trevor Bauer’s stature
Although he has not pitched across the last year and a half to suspension, Bauer has proven his Major League efficiency in his seven-plus seasons in the big leagues.
Arguably one of the best right-handed pitchers in the game, his Cy Young season featured a 5-4 record with a 1.73 ERA in 11 starts. Across 73 innings pitched as a member of the Cincinnati Reds, he allowed just 14 earned runs all year.
In 17 starts with the Dodgers in 2021 before allegations took him off the field, Bauer posted an 8-5 record with a 2.59 ERA allowing 31 earned runs in 107.2 IP.
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