Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred announced on Friday that Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed pitcher Trevor Bauer has been suspended for 324 games, or two full seasons, under Major League Baseball's Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy.
Bauer will not be paid during the suspension, which takes effect immediately and will stretch into the 2024 season. His suspension is by a substantial margin the longest in the history of the policy, which dates back to 2016.
Bauer, 31, has not pitched since last June 28. Days after that start, he was accused of assault. He was then placed on administrative leave by the league while it conducted an investigation, and at the same time the Pasadena police department undertook its own inquiry. The latter announced on February 8 that Bauer would not face criminal charges in relation to the allegations. The league's collectively bargained domestic violence policy allows MLB to discipline Bauer even if no criminal charges are filed.
Bauer has since released a statement on Twitter, in which he announced his plans to appeal MLB's decision. You can read his full statement here.
As ESPN's Jeff Passan and others have noted, all others suspended under this MLB policy have agreed to disciplinary specifics and as a result received credit for games missed during the investigation. Bauer, however, did not agree to his suspension -- hence his appeal -- and thus is not being credited for the games he lost to administrative leave.
The Dodgers also released a statement. It reads:
Today we were informed that MLB has concluded its investigation into allegations that have been made against Trevor Bauer, and the Commissioner has issued his decision regarding discipline. The Dodgers organization takes all allegations of this nature very seriously and does not condone or excuse any acts of domestic violence or sexual assault. We've cooperated fully with MLB's investigation since it began, and we fully support MLB's Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse Policy, and the Commissioner's enforcement of the Policy. We understand that Trevor has the right to appeal the Commissioner's decision. Therefore, we will not comment further until the process is complete.
In late June of 2021, Britt Ghiroli and Katie Strang of The Athletic reported details of a woman's encounters with Bauer, which she says were initially consensual. "I agreed to have consensual sex; however, I did not agree or consent to what he did next. I did not agree to be sexually assaulted," the woman said. The Athletic's report, which includes graphic details from a restraining order request, including allegations that Bauer strangled and punched the woman, can be found here.
In August of that same year, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge denied a request to extend a temporary restraining order against Bauer. Bauer recently filed suit against his accuser, and in March he also filed suit against two media outlets and a reporter.
Bauer, the 2020 NL Cy Young winner, made 17 starts with the Dodgers last season prior to being placed on leave. He signed a three-year contract worth $102 million during the 2020-21 offseason.
