On Thursday, Major League Baseball announced that umpire Martin F. Scheinman reduced Trevor Bauer’s suspension, putting the Los Angeles Dodgers on the watch to determine the right-hander’s future with the club.
Bauer was originally suspended for 324 games by MLB commissioner Rob Manfred for violating the league’s joint policy on domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse, but the referee reduced the suspension to 194 games.
Despite serving just 144 games of suspension, Bauer was reinstated by the referee considering the time he was out during the 2021 season when he was placed on administrative leave. However, Bauer was also conceded for the first 50 games of the 2023 season.
The Dodgers now have until January 6, 2023 to add Bauer to their 40-man list, trade him or release him, but the timing of the decision caught the team by surprise, according to LA Times’ Jack Harris:
Team officials were not expecting any major news – particularly regarding the status of Trevor Bauer’s appeal of a domestic violence suspension, a decision the club believed would not be known for several weeks, according to people who knew the situation not authorized to speak in public.
Along with the earlier-than-expected ruling, the Dodgers were also not informed of the decision until just before MLB made the announcement, and others within the organization were not told until the news broke:
Team officials were only notified of the ruling about a half hour earlier, people familiar with the situation said, and some employees were unaware of it until MLB’s public announcement.
The early belief is that the Dodgers will release Bauer when they officially decide how to proceed, but they’ve been silent about his future with the club throughout the process and have maintained that stance after Scheinman’s decision.
“We have just been informed of the referee’s decision and will respond as soon as possible,” it said in a statement.
The Dodgers signed Bauer to a three-year, $102 million contract in February 2021 that included a release clause after the first two seasons. During his first season with the team, he was accused of sexual assault by a San Diego woman and placed on administrative leave.
Bauer was also accused of sexual assault by two other women.
The administrative leave was extended multiple times during the 2021 season and the following year as the league conducted its investigation into Bauer. Manfred imposed a record suspension last April after they investigated the three women’s allegations against Bauer.
LA prosecutors declined to pursue Bauer on criminal charges following a police investigation into allegations made by the San Diego women, but civil lawsuits continue and MLB’s burden of proof is far lighter than that required in court.
Even with Bauer’s successful appeal, the umpire ruled that a 194-game suspension from the league was warranted and confirmed that Bauer had violated league policy.
“While we believe a longer suspension was warranted, MLB will honor the neutral umpire’s decision, which maintains the longest-ever active suspension of baseball players for sexual assault or domestic violence,” the league said in a statement.
“We understand that this process was difficult for the witnesses involved and we thank them for their participation. Due to the collective agreement confidentiality provisions of the joint program, we cannot provide any further information at this point in time.”
Bauer has his eye on pitching in 2023
Regardless of whether the Dodgers fire him or not, the 31-year-old took to Twitter to share his excitement about returning to the major leagues.
Bauer’s agent Rachel Luba and attorneys Jon Fetterolf and Shawn Holley also shared their thoughts on his prospect.
“While we are pleased that Mr. Bauer was reinstated immediately, we disagree that any discipline should have been imposed. Nonetheless, 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.
If the Dodgers release him, it remains to be seen if any team would be willing to add Bauer to their roster. But based on previous cases, it seems likely that at least one team would give him a chance.
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