Q&A: What might an MLB owner ask Trevor Bauer? Here's a transcript of what he had to say.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — On a Monday night three years ago, the Dodgers' Trevor Bauer threw what might have been the last pitch of his major league career, a third strike. The next day, a woman named Lindsey Hill obtained a temporary restraining order against him, providing hospital records that said she had been diagnosed with "acute head injury" and "assault by manual strangulation" in the wake of a sexual encounter.
A court denied Hill a permanent restraining order against Bauer, and the Los Angeles County district attorney declined to file charges against him.
Major League Baseball placed him on paid leave and, after months of investigation that included allegations from other women, ultimately suspended him for violating its policy against sexual assault and domestic violence. None of the allegations resulted in charges.
His suspension expired before the 2023 season, but no major league team signed him last year, and he pitched in Japan.
He would like to return to the major leagues, but spring training is underway and no team has offered him a contract. Any team that would offer him a contract almost certainly would require him to meet with its owner.
What might that meeting be like? I met with Bauer to ask him things an owner might ask, posing questions as if I were an actual owner.
What follows is a transcript of that meeting edited for clarity. Bauer's agent, Rachel Luba, participated in the interview.
— As an owner, I'll let my baseball people evaluate baseball skill. But there are close to two dozen starting pitchers still out there as free agents, and there are other guys my team could trade for. Maybe some of those pitchers are better than you. Maybe they're not. But acquiring any of them would not divide my fan base in the way I think signing you would. So why should I sign you?
I know I can help the team. I know that I can help the other players in the clubhouse. The one thing I'm most passionate about is helping young guys develop so — outside of just my performance, which I am confident in — I know I can make my teammates better. I can make the organization better. I have ideas I could share.
Off the field, I've obviously made some mistakes along the way. I'd like to be an example of doing the second half of my career better than the first half of my career. I'd like to show that people can learn from mistakes, change, and get better.
I think that I have a unique ability to connect with a fan base, outside of the normal on-field stuff and team-related stuff. I have a large platform that I can connect with people on. I am passionate about helping the community and the game of baseball. I've probably gone about it in the wrong way. Some of the things I've done have been good. Some have been bad. But I've learned a lot over the years. I'd like to be able to connect with a fan base, help grow the game of
