After a long hiatus, Trevor Bauer (Yokohama DeNA BayStars) has adapted to the Japanese professional baseball scene to the point where he won two monthly MVP titles in his first season in Japan.
메이저사이트Bauer began his professional career in 2011 when he was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft and went on to play for the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, and Los Angeles Dodgers, compiling a career record of 83-69 with a 3.79 ERA over 10 seasons. However, his major league career was cut short after the 2021 season.
In 2020, a shortened season due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), Bauer went 5-4 with a 1.73 ERA and was named the National League’s Cy Young Award winner. However, his troubles began off the field. He was accused of sexually assaulting a woman he met through social media. Bauer was found not guilty due to insufficient evidence, but he received a severe 324-game suspension from Major League Baseball.
Bauer fought the commissioner’s office to have the suspension reduced, and was successful in getting it reduced to 194 games. However, the Dodgers, who had signed Bauer to a massive three-year, $120 million contract prior to the 2021 season, decided to release him, leaving 29 other teams unwilling to reach out to the “troublemaker.
Inevitably, Bauer turned to Asia, where he signed with the Yokohama DeNA Basestars ahead of the season. Bauer’s debut was delayed due to shoulder soreness prior to the start of the season, but he held up well despite the extended time away from the mound. Bauer quickly shook off his early struggles in Japan, going 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA in four games in June when the exchange began, earning him his first monthly MVP title.
Despite sticking to a four-day rest rotation, Bauer threw more than 100 pitches in each outing, making him the DeNA’s “ace” alongside Shota Imanaga. In August, he went 3-1 with a 1.67 ERA in six appearances, which was even better than his June performance and earned him his second monthly MVP award. However, Bauer is currently on a “closed season”.
Bauer suffered an unfortunate accident against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan on March 30. In the bottom of the third inning, Hanshin’s Koji Chikamoto hit a line drive between third base and the pitcher, which looked good until he slid to make the catch, but Bauer twisted and threw the ball to first base.
Bauer was only able to pitch three innings at the time, and has been completely lost since. Bauer was diagnosed with a distal right iliopsoas injury. The iliopsoas is a muscle that sits slightly above the pelvis, which means it’s a lower back injury close to the hip. At the time of Bauer’s injury, manager Daisuke Miura gave a negative nuance when asked about his return this season, and it’s clear that it’s going to be tough for him to return during the season.
According to multiple local media outlets, including Japan’s Daily Sports and Full Count, Bauer is not expected to return until the final stage of the climactic series. This means that Yokohama DeNA will have to make the postseason. After 27 games, Yokohama is in third place in the Central League, 3.5 games behind the fourth-place Yomiuri Giants.
Both teams have four games to go before the end of the regular season, and at this point, Yokohama DeNA’s chances of making the postseason are very good. They only need to win one game. However, baseball isn’t over until it’s over, so there’s no telling what the future holds. An “upset” could happen if Yokohama loses all of its remaining games and Yomiuri takes all four.
According to multiple Japanese media outlets, Bauer said on his YouTube channel, “If I complete the long toss by October 6, I have one week to pitch out of the bullpen. About a week to pitch with batters on base. It should be October 20 before I can pitch in a game or two.” But even if Yokohama DeNA makes the postseason, there’s a problem. If Yokohama qualifies for the postseason in third place, they will need to defeat the Hiroshima Toyo Kappa in the climactic series, the First Stage, to advance to the upper rounds. That will happen on October 20.
If he recovers more quickly, his return could be accelerated, but it won’t be easy to make a comeback in the First Stage. For now, Miura said, “I didn’t watch Bauer’s YouTube videos. I will decide to return once I have confirmed with my trainer that my senses and everything else is going smoothly,” he said, adding that “nothing has been decided at the moment.”
Bauer signed a short-term contract of one year when he signed with Yokohama DeNA, so he could move to another team after this season, or even leave for another league. The local media has been speculating about Bauer’s ransom. It remains to be seen if Bauer will finish the season with an injury or if he will return to the mound in a Yokohama DeNA uniform and win the Yuzo.