Steve Webb
Holy cow! For the second straight year, the Dodgers have made a offseason move that will redefine their franchise in the near future. Mercurial righthander Trevor Bauer has signed a three-year deal with the Dodgers. So now, there are three Cy Young winners in a potential Dodgers rotation next year. And that’s not even counting Walker Buehler. Or Julio Urias. Take THAT, San Diego!
Just as we were all sitting around waiting on news from Justin Turner, Andrew Friedman has pulled another rabbit out of his hat. All week, we were hearing that the Bauer announcement was imminent, but everyone “in the know” seemed to think that it was going to come down to the Mets, which makes sense. New owner Steve Cohen has a boatload of money to spend and he has shown that he is in “win now” mode.
However, the Dodgers are in “win always” mode. And this deal, the news of which broke early Friday afternoon, has locked up the services of UCLA grad Bauer for three years at a reported $102 million dollars. Bauer confirmed his decision in true Bauer fashion with a teasing cliff-hanger video that he posted to his social media accounts.
So, not only do we get to enjoy the pleasure of seeing the Mets lose out on their big fish, we get to bask in the glow of the reigning Cy Young winner. Last season, albeit shortened, Bauer was nearly unhittable. Even though his record was only 5-4, his ERA was a microscopic 1.73 with a filthy WHIP of 0.79. Those are Kershaw 2014 kind of numbers. Is it sustainable over a whole season? Probably not, but even if he gets in the vicinity of those numbers, the Dodgers will be overjoyed.
Yes, he’s arrogant. And, yes he’s a bit of a flake (remember him tossing the ball over the fence much to the dismay of Terry Francona?).
But he’s smart, he’s driven to be the best. And now, he’s a Dodger. Welcome to LA, Trevor, my man!
