Former Los Angeles Dodgers star pitcher Trevor Bauer is reportedly headed to Japan to play with the Yokohama BayStars, per YamadaSANSPO on Twitter. The contract is reportedly worth $4 million (plus incentives) for one season.
Bauer’s original 324-game suspension was reduced to 194 games this past offseason. As a result, Bauer would have been able to play in MLB this year. However, the Dodgers released the former Cy Young Award winner and he did not sign with an MLB club following the release.
He was linked to a number of big league ball clubs, but a deal failed to come to fruition with any of them. Teams were forced to weigh the risk versus reward of signing Trevor Bauer. He’s an extremely talented pitcher capable of boosting a rotation. However, he would also bring no shortage of attention which could prove to be an unnecessary distraction. As a result, many teams were hesitant in regards to offering Bauer a deal.