The Boston Red Sox are ready to spend and add pitching this offseason, and there are some big names out there today; Scott Boras reportedly stated that there had been roughly ten teams that have told him that they are looking to add two pitchers so that may not be a good sign for the Red Sox. Still, there’s a name that not many people are talking about that is a free agent, and that is Trevor Bauer, who last season pitched in the Japan league for the Yokohama DeNa BayStars of the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan. Bauer was named to the NPB All-Star Game in 2023 and was named the June MVP. Bauer could be a nice number four or five starter in the Red Sox rotation, and I’m not saying make him the only addition, but why not add two via free agency, with one being Bauer and adding another via trade? The Red Sox rotation could be Trade #1, Free Agent #2, Brayan Bello, Chris Sale, and Trevor Bauer, then you could potentially include Tanner Houck or Kutter Crawford in a trade and keep the other in the bullpen then when an injury occurs you have one of them or Nick Pivetta to start; that could be a solid rotation, let’s look at Bauer’s career.
Trevor Bauer By The Numbers
Bauer was drafted third overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2011 MLB Draft out of UCLA. In his first season, which was 2012, he made four starts, going 1-2 with a 6.06 ERA, a 5.18 FIP, a 1.65 WHIP, a 1.1 HR/9, a 7.2 BB/9, and a 9.4 K/9 for Arizona. In December of 2012, he was traded from Arizona to the Cleveland Indians, where he spent seven seasons; with the Indians, he appeared in 180 games, making 170 starts, going 67-53 with a 3.76 ERA, a 3.85 FIP, a 1.28 WHIP, a 1.0 HR/9, 3.5 BB/9, and a 9.4 K/9. In 2019, he was traded at the trade deadline to the Cincinnati Reds; he pitched for the Reds for the rest of 2019 and all of the shortened season in 2020, making 21 starts, going 7-9 with a 3.76 ERA, a 3.73 FIP, a 1.03 WHIP, a 1.5 HR/9, a 2.5 BB/9, and an 11.7 K/9. In 2020, he won the National League Cy Young Award when he went 5-4 with a 1.73 ERA and struck out 100 in 73 innings of work through 11 starts. In 2021 he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers and made 17 starts going 8-5 with a 2.59 ERA, a 4.03 FIP, a 1.00 WHIP, a 1.6 HR/9, a 3.1 BB/9, and an 11.5 K/9; his season would be cut short when he was placed on administrative leave while an internal investigation was opened into sexual assault allegations that had been made against him, he would later be suspended for 324 games in 2022 which is the equivalent of two seasons, but on December 22 of that year his suspension was reduced to 194 games which meant he would be reinstated immediately and on January 12, 2023, he was released by the Dodgers. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office decided not to file criminal charges against Bauer, and both suits were settled. Bauer released a video last month stating he was happy to be moving on with his life. This means he is ready to return to the MLB if someone is willing to give him a chance, so why not the Red Sox, who need pitching? In 2023, when pitching in Japan, he made 19 appearances, going 10-4 with a 2.76 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP, a 1.0 HR/9, a 2.1 BB/9, and a 9.0 K/9. In his career in the MLB, he is 83-69 with a 3.79 ERA, a 3.87 FIP, a 1.24 WHIP, a 1.1 HR/9, a 3.4 BB/9, and a 9.8 K/9. In his career against the American League East, he has made 32 starts, going 9-14 with a 5.70 ERA, a 1.34 WHIP, and a 9.1 K/9.
Bottom Line:
I think Bauer, even with his antics on the mound, is good for baseball and deserves a second chance. He is a good pitcher and can help a team that needs pitching, so why not the Red Sox? He could be, as I stated above, an excellent fifth starter on a one-year deal and do a team option for a second year, so if it doesn’t work out, you don’t have to keep him, but if it does, you keep him, it could be a steal. What do you think, Red Sox fans?
