Dodgers Rumors: What's Factoring Into the Trevor Bauer Decision For LA?
The entire league is still waiting for the Dodgers to make a decision regarding Trevor Bauer. They have until January 6 to decide whether they want to keep him on the active roster, or release him and still pay around $22 million. The best-case scenario would be finding a trading partner, but that feels very unlikely.
So for the next week or so, they'll be making a decision based on a few different factors. Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times told dodgersnation.com on Thursday what some of those factors are:
"The first thing you have to decide is, do you want Trevor Bauer back on your team?" Shaikin said. "There, I don't think is a question that he can help the team. To what degree, we don't know because he has not pitched competitively for a year and a half. But clearly, you know, a guy who won a Cy Young award not too long ago probably has the ability to help the team. So, is this a guy you can use?"
That's just the first question, and Shaikin explained that it only gets more difficult after that.
"And if you decide that you don't want him back on the team, is your calculus about, you don't think he can perform? Is it the, as you mentioned, maybe a fan backlash? Or are you worried, as you mentioned, that maybe, you know, he might come back to beat you this year? And those are decisions the Dodgers are going to have to make and ultimately explain to the fans."
Those three factors are the ones the Dodgers are going to have to mull over for the next week or so. If they decide they don't want him back, what is going to be the ultimate reason for releasing him? People are obviously going to ask them that question.
If they come to a conclusion that he won't be good enough to help them win (which feels unlikely), they better hope he doesn't join another team and pitch like his former Cy Young self. The last thing they want is to have him beat them in a big game.
However, if they say the reason is potential fan backlash, you have to wonder how Bauer's camp will react to that, considering his suspension was reduced and he was reinstated. The Dodgers already had a report get leaked that they weren't going to sign Carlos Correa due to potential fan backlash, so what would it be like if they kept Bauer? Or what would it be like if they released him?
There's no way of knowing what the reaction will be like, and what reasons the Dodgers will give regarding the Bauer decision. That is why Shaikin believes the Dodgers are going to take all the time they have to make this decision. It is by no means an easy one, and they need to feel confident that they're making the best decision for their organization.
