Scandal-Ridden Pitcher Trevor Bauer Returning to Japan's Yokohama BayStars

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JON VANKIN is a journalist and writer. He is the author of five nonfiction books and nine graphic novels. His writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Salon, the L.A. Weekly and dozens of other publications and he has received numerous awards and honors including three New England Press Association awards.

In connection with his work, Vankin has made numerous media appearances on such networks as CNN, CNBC, FOX, the BBC and the CBC as well as hundreds of radio stations and podcasts.

Vankin in his wide-ranging career has also served as an editor of comic books and newspapers. He is the editor of the NEW YORK TIMES #1 BESTSELLING graphic novel GET JIRO! by the late, great Anthony Bourdain. He co-wrote the hit Off Broadway musical FOREVER DUSTY, and served as a sportswriter and editor at The Daily Yomiuri, the English-language edition of Japan's largest newspaper, the Yomiuri Shimbun, in Tokyo.

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Back in June 2020, a San Diego woman made a series of shocking allegations against All-Star pitcher Trevor Bauer, claiming he committed sexually violent acts against her. The woman sought a restraining order against Bauer, who denied the allegations. By 2023, three other women had alleged that Bauer sexually assaulted them, allegations he also denied "unequivocally," according to his lawyer.

Bauer was never arrested or criminally charged, but Major League Baseball, after conducting its own nine-month investigation, hit Bauer with an unprecedented 324-game ban (two full, 162-game seasons). But in December 2022, an independent arbitrator slashed Bauer's suspension to 194 games and declared that he would be eligible to play the entire 2023 season.

Trevor Bauer will return to Japan.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 28: Trevor Bauer #27 of the Los Angeles Dodgers returns to the dugout after the top of the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium on June... Meg Oliphant/Getty Images

Bauer, however, found no takers and instead signed a one-year, $3 million contract to pitch for the Yokohama DeNA Baystars in Japan's NPB, the professional baseball circuit there.

Two years later, after pitching a season in Mexico, Bauer, 34, will return to Japan to pitch for the BayStars again, according to a report by Japan's Kyodo News Service.

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"He's a big piece on the team," BayStars manager Daisuke Miura — who himself pitched an incredible 25 professional seasons, all for Yokohama — told Kyodo. "I expect him to be in the starting rotation throughout the season."

Bauer, a Los Angeles native, was drafted in the first round, third overall, by the Arizona Diamondbacks out of UCLA in 2011. He debuted with Arizona the following season but was quickly traded to Cleveland, then still called the Indians, where he compiled a 67-53 record and 3.79 ERA in seven seasons.

Cleveland traded him to the Cincinnati Reds in 2019, when in the COVID-shortened 2020 season he won the National League Cy Young with a 1.73 ERA in 73 innings. But after signing a three-year, $102 million dollar free agent contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2021, Bauer appeared in just 17 games before the team placed him on administrative leave due to the allegations against him.

By rejoining the BayStars, Bauer will pitch for the depending NPB championship team. In the 2024 Japan Series, Yokohama DeNA defeated the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in six games to win its first NPB title since 1998.

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About the writer

JON VANKIN is a journalist and writer. He is the author of five nonfiction books and nine graphic novels. His writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Salon, the L.A. Weekly and dozens of other publications and he has received numerous awards and honors including three New England Press Association awards.

In connection with his work, Vankin has made numerous media appearances on such networks as CNN, CNBC, FOX, the BBC and the CBC as well as hundreds of radio stations and podcasts.

Vankin in his wide-ranging career has also served as an editor of comic books and newspapers. He is the editor of the NEW YORK TIMES #1 BESTSELLING graphic novel GET JIRO! by the late, great Anthony Bourdain. He co-wrote the hit Off Broadway musical FOREVER DUSTY, and served as a sportswriter and editor at The Daily Yomiuri, the English-language edition of Japan's largest newspaper, the Yomiuri Shimbun, in Tokyo.

Writers Page

JON VANKIN is a journalist and writer. He is the author of five nonfiction books and nine graphic novels. His ... Read more