The Milwaukee Brewers are 38-26 and in first place in the National League Central Division. This is an impressive feat that is not garnering enough praise from the national media considering how thin their starting rotation has been. Prior to the season, many questioned how good the starting pitching would be without Corbin Burnes (who was traded to the Baltimore Orioles) and Brandon Woodruff (who is out for the year with an injury).
However, the concerns surrounding the Brewers’ starting pitching has not been because they underperform, but rather that it has been difficult to get healthy starting pitchers out on the mound to perform at all. As of this writing, Milwaukee has five (a whole starting rotation’s worth) starters on the injured list: Wade Miley, DL Hall, Joe Ross, Jakob Junis, and Robert Gasser.
With starters falling left and right, many fans have posed the question on social media as to why the Brewers will not sign free agent pitcher Trevor Bauer.
Trevor Bauer Is Pitching Well Internationally
Advocates of Bauer point to his international stats over the last two seasons as evidence that he deserves another chance to play Major League Baseball. Admittedly, they are very good.
In 2023, Bauer pitched in Japan and had an 11-4 record to go with a 2.59 ERA and 1.13 WHIP. He also struck out 160 batters in 156.2 innings pitched.
This year, Bauer is pitching in Mexico and is 7-0 with a 1.70 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. He also has 76 strikeouts in just 53 innings pitched.
With such stellar numbers, why aren’t the Brewers, or any other MLB team, blowing up his phone? After all, in 2020 and 2021, Bauer was a combine 13-9 with a 2.24 ERA, three complete games, and two shutouts.
The Milwaukee Brewers Will Not Sign Trevor Bauer Due to Various Reasons
Everyone knows about the assault allegations that were brought against Bauer that led to his serving a record 194-game suspension. As of last year, Bauer had settled his suits with his initial accuser, but still has another one pending that is related to allegations brought against him by another woman.
It is also a fact that Bauer has never been arrested or charged with any crime. As there are several Major League Baseball players that currently playing who have been arrested and charged for assault and abuse (Aroldis Chapman, for example), it is logical to conclude that the allegations surrounding Bauer actually have nothing to do with the reason why he is not being signed by the Brewers or other Major League teams.
The fact of the matter is that no team wants to sign Bauer because no one wants to play with him. He is a clubhouse cancer that has, on more than one occasion, thrown temper tantrums on the field and showed up his manager.
Take, for example, this meltdown that he had with the Cleveland Guardians in 2019:
Trevor Bauer and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad 5th inning, a breakdown pic.twitter.com/LR9LPlY3AH
— Jomboy (@Jomboy_) July 28, 2019
After giving up numerous hits and runs, manager Terry Francona was coming out to pull Bauer from the game. As he was walking out, Bauer took the ball and violently threw it into centerfield. One of his teammates reacted like he thought Bauer was going to throw it at him.
Shortly after this incident, he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds.
And this is not the only time Bauer has done something like this. There are numerous reports of players stating they have no desire to play with him or to have him on their team.
The Brewers are successful, in large part, because of how cohesive they are as a team. Adding Bauer would ruin that. And if there was any question as to whether or not he would improve his behavior after his suspension, it was answered in this video from Japan last year:
A frustrated Trevor Bauer tells his teammates to wake up pic.twitter.com/gxHUF1A8Af
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 1, 2023
Allegations aside, he is not the kind of person, player, teammate, or whatever label one wants to use that Milwaukee wants on their team. With the allegations in mind, he is a public relations nightmare that no Major League team wants a part of, especially the Brewers.
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