Former Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer admits he lived his life in a “reckless” fashion and vows to right those wrongs of his past as he seeks to put the sexual assault allegations made against him in 2021 in the rear-view mirror and resume his MLB career.
Bauer appeared on Fox News Thursday to say that his agents have contacted various teams about a possible return. While he hasn’t received interest from a team yet, he acknowledged his mistakes and promised to make better decisions in the future.
“I know I’ve made mistakes. That’s kinda what I’m trying to focus on,” Bauer told Fox News’ Bill Hemmer. “How do I get better from the experiences that I’ve had. I’ve made mistakes in my personal life. I’m really detail-oriented when it comes to baseball and my training, but I didn’t apply the same level of scrutiny to my personal life.
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 28, 2021, in Los Angeles, California. (Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)
“I made mistakes. I agreed to do things I shouldn’t have done. I was reckless. It hurt a lot of people along the way. I made things very difficult for Major League Baseball, for the Dodgers, my teammates, my friends, family, people close to me. So, I’ve done a lot of reflecting on that and made a lot of changes in my life to address that. I’m not having casual sexual relationships anymore, for example.”
Bauer also expressed regret for the way he dealt with the media and others on social media while he was fighting the sexual assault charges.
“I also made a lot of people in the media mad,” he said. “I was very immature with how I handled things when people would write things about me I didn’t agree with. I should’ve just had a private, adult conversation with someone. I was bullied a lot as a kid. I don’t really want to get into that, but at the time, I viewed a lot of my responses on social media as standing up for myself and having a voice. And I think I was just immature.
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“I’ve grown up a lot, for sure. My viewpoints now are drastically different than they were five years ago, ten years ago. Different things are important to me.”
With one lawsuit against him remaining, Bauer sees the light at the end of the tunnel regarding his legal issues and is focused on returning to MLB.
“I’d love to play baseball. That’s my goal — to play baseball here in the United States,” he said. “Still one of the best pitchers in the world. I’d like to compete at the highest level. I’m also really passionate about helping people, being good for the game. I think I’ve done a lot of damage, unfortunately, in the first half of my career, and I’d love a second opportunity to do things better.”
Bauer hasn’t been entirely inactive. He pitched in the Japanese league in 2023 and compiled an 11-4 record.