Trevor Bauer Immediately Gives Up Monster Moonshot To First Batter After Getting Sent Down To Japanese Minor Leagues

Trevor Bauer eventually settled in to his fourth minor league start in Japan, but the first batter that he faced took him way deep. It was a moment of panic, to say the least.

Bauer, the 2020 NL Cy Young Award winner, has not pitched in the MLB since 2021. He placed on administrative leave amid an investigation into significant sexual assault allegations and was later suspended per the league's domestic violence policy.

Although the once-dominant ace never faced any criminal charges and maintains his innocence, no team was willing to sign him in 2023 after his reinstatement. Bauer went overseas as a result and signed with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars on a one-year deal worth up to $4 million (ish) with incentives.

His arrival to Japan was met with a lot of fanfare. Massive crowds gathered to watch the former Diamondback, Guardian, Red and Dodger.

However, after getting the call up to the big leagues, the honeymoon quickly came to an end.

Bauer's first start was steller.

His second could have been worse, but was not great.

Bauer's third start with the BayStars was terrible.

With hopes of getting Bauer right, Yokohama sent him back down to the minors. At 32 years old, after just three starts with the big league club, he was demoted.

Trevor Bauer didn't have his stuff early.

Bauer made his first start back on the minor league level on Sunday. It got off to a concerning start.

The first batter got ahold of the third pitch of the game and sent it towering over the wall in centerfield.

Bauer was visibly pissed. His struggles continued right away.

However, Bauer started to get his groove and kept things in check, mostly. He allowed eight hits and just the one run on 97 pitches over six innings, struck out 10 and did not allow a walk.

The line could have been better. It could have been a lot worse.

Bauer apologized for how the outing got started after the game. He also noted that he started to "throw like himself" after the third inning, and was starting to feel better about his stuff.

Bauer's next start is to be determined. It is unclear as to whether the 32-year-old will return to the BayStars or stay on the farm.