Trevor Bauer has not pitched in Major League Baseball since June 2021, despite later pitching professionally in Japan, Mexico, and the independent Atlantic League. Bauer says he has offered to play for free, accept a minor-league assignment, donate his salary, and give up social media control in an effort to return.
MLB reinstated him after an arbitrator reduced his suspension from 324 games to 194 games, and the league’s public position is that he is eligible to sign, but no MLB club has added him to a roster.
A Cy Young winner without a team
Trevor Bauer was one of the best pitchers in baseball just five years ago. In 2020, Bauer won the National League Cy Young Award with the Cincinnati Reds. He led the NL with a 1.73 ERA that season, striking out 100 batters in just 73 innings during the shortened pandemic year.
It was a dominant, unforgettable run. The Dodgers took notice and signed him to a three-year, $102 million deal in February 2021. He was electric early in that season, leading the NL in both strikeouts and innings pitched through July. Then everything stopped.
What happened in 2021
Assault allegations derailed Bauer’s career before it could hit its stride in Los Angeles. In late June 2021, a San Diego woman filed for a restraining order, alleging assault during two encounters. MLB placed Bauer on administrative leave on July 2. He has not thrown a single major league pitch since June 28 of that year.
Bauer denied all allegations. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file criminal charges in February 2022. Despite that, MLB moved forward with its own investigation under its Joint Domestic Violence, Assault, and Child Abuse Policy.
Years spent pitching abroad
Rather than wait around, Bauer kept his career alive overseas. He signed with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in Japan for the 2023 season and posted a 10-4 record with a 2.76 ERA and 130 strikeouts across 130 innings. That was a strong showing for a pitcher returning from years away from competitive baseball.
In 2024, he moved to Mexico’s Liga Mexicana de Béisbol. He went 10-0 with a 2.48 ERA for the Diablos Rojos del México and was named the league’s Pitcher of the Year. He returned to Japan in 2025 before eventually signing with the Long Island Ducks in early 2026.
Offering to play for free
Bauer has gone further than any free agent in recent memory to remove every possible barrier. He told Dakich that he has offered to play for absolutely nothing. He has offered to go to the minor leagues. He has even offered to donate his entire salary to a team’s charitable foundation.
He has offered to give up control of his social media accounts and stop making content entirely. All 30 MLB teams were contacted by reporters asking why they would not sign a player willing to work for free. Not one team responded. Their silence only added to the mystery surrounding his exclusion from the league.
Little-known fact: During his 2024 season in Mexico, Bauer struck out nine consecutive batters in one game, tying the all-time league record.
Suspicions about the commissioner
Bauer stopped short of pointing a direct finger but made clear he has his theories. He said that he does not know exactly what happens behind the scenes when negotiations collapse. But he has spoken face-to-face with Commissioner Rob Manfred more than once.
He acknowledged that his public clashes with the league over sticky substances and COVID season decisions damaged his standing. One team reportedly told Bauer directly that signing him was not their decision but an MLB decision. MLB has maintained publicly that Bauer is a free agent eligible to sign with any of its 30 clubs. The two positions remain difficult to reconcile.
The no-hitter that changed nothing
The no-hitter showed Bauer remains effective against Atlantic League competition. The phones stayed quiet anyway. Pitching for the Long Island Ducks against the Lancaster Stormers, Bauer threw seven hitless innings in a 13-0 win. He struck out seven batters on just 84 pitches while issuing one walk.
It was only the third no-hitter in the Ducks franchise history and just his second US start since 2021. It was a statement performance. For Bauer, the no-hitter was not something he needed to prove to himself. He already knows he can pitch. It was meant to force everyone else to pay attention. So far, no MLB team has called.
Little-known fact: Bauer’s no-hitter came as part of a doubleheader, meaning he only needed seven innings to complete the feat rather than the traditional nine.
What comes next for Bauer
The 35-year-old is running out of ways to make the case for himself. He told Dakich that he is tired of the noise that surrounds every start he makes in America. Playing in Mexico and Japan was simpler because the only focus was baseball. In the US, every outing comes with media attention, opinion pieces, and constant reminders of the fight he has been waging for years.
Still, Bauer has not walked away. He is pitching in the Atlantic League and waiting. His ERA through his first two Ducks starts sits at 1.64. The baseball argument for giving him a shot has never been cleaner. Whether that argument ever reaches someone willing to act on it remains the central question of his career.
TL;DR
- Trevor Bauer has been locked out of MLB since 2021 following a domestic violence suspension that was later reduced from 324 to 194 games.
- No criminal charges were ever filed against him. The LA County DA declined to prosecute.
- He has pitched successfully in Japan and Mexico, including winning the 2024 Mexican League Pitcher of the Year award.
- Bauer says multiple teams have reached near-final agreement stages before mysteriously pulling out without explanation.
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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.
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