“At least, teams that will show interest will come out. Once we recruit Bauer, we will think about the aftermath later.”
Currently, interest in the ‘devil’s talent’ that the Los Angeles Dodgers gave up in the US Major League is hot. This is the story of Cy Young Award pitcher Trevor Bauer (32). On the 7th (Korean time), Bauer received a DFA (transfer player designation) from the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers decided not to accompany the troublemaker even if they were willing to pay Bauer an annual salary of 22.5 million dollars (approximately 28.3 billion won).
Bauer was investigated in June 2021 for assaulting a woman with whom he had sex. The Los Angeles District Prosecutor’s Office dismissed Bauer’s indictment due to insufficient evidence in February of last year, but the Major League Secretariat issued a 324-game suspension after its own investigation. Bauer immediately appealed, and the Secretariat reduced his suspension to 194 games on December 22 last year.
Bauer signed a three-year, $102 million (approximately 128.5 billion won) contract with the Dodgers ahead of the 2021 season. Under the existing punishment, the Dodgers could have concluded the contract with Bauer without any additional salary burden, but as the contract was reduced to 194 games, the Dodgers were placed in a situation where they had to pay $22.5 million in annual salary this year. Bauer can return to the mound starting May 24 of this year.
The Dodgers could have hired Bauer again, but after much consideration, they decided not to accompany him. Prior to the decision, the Dodgers executives visited the clubhouse to seek opinions from the players, but it is known that there were many negative opinions. The Dodgers can trade Bauer within seven days and plan to release him as a free agent if no team appears to trade him. After 7 days, all clubs can sign a contract with Bauer for the minimum annual salary of 720,000 dollars (900 million won).
Will there be a team looking for a chance to buy the devil’s talent for just $720,000? ESPN looked at it as a possibility. An agent told ESPN that 메이저사이트“at least some teams that show interest will show up,” and a club official predicted that “some teams will try to get Bauer and deal with the fallout later.”
Bauer was active with 8 wins and 5 losses, 107⅔ innings, and an average ERA of 2.59 in 17 games before taking administrative leave in 2021. In the 2020 season, he has been active as a top-ranked starter in the big leagues, such as receiving a National League Cy video from the Cincinnati Reds. Considering the situation in the major leagues where first and second picks are rare, Bauer’s talent is worth coveting.
On the contrary, there are opinions that Bauer will be kicked out of the big leagues altogether. Prior to the Dodgers, Bauer was marked as a troublemaker several times while playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati. He was traded because of incidents such as conflicts with teammates, eccentricities, and SNS altercations.
Each time, Bauer never showed any attitude of reflection, and this time it was the same. Bauer issued a rebuttal statement as soon as the Dodgers announced the breakup statement and said, “The conversation about returning to the Dodgers continued for two weeks, and I was able to meet and talk with the Dodgers executives yesterday (6th). He said he hoped he would come back and throw the ball. I was disappointed with the Dodgers’ decision today.”
A general manager told ESPN that “no team would try to sign Bauer,” and an agent told ESPN that “no one can control Bauer.”
There are loud voices saying that no one will take the risk of being Bauer now, but general manager Han said: “You only need one team.”