MLB suspends Trevor Bauer for two seasons over sexual assault allegations

The MLB suspended Dodgers starter Trevor Bauer for two seasons over sexual assault allegations Friday.

The allegedly terrible person is gone (for now), and baseball is better off without him, that’s for sure.

The suspension comes after a legal case in which he was never charged criminally, but in it he was accused of punching and choking a woman into unconsciousness during two sexual encounters. He has repeatedly denied the claims, saying the rough sex was consensual.

Bauer is appealing the suspension and, according to his tweet, he expects to win.

“In the strongest possible terms, I deny committing any violation of the league’s domestic violence & sexual assault policy,” he posted to Twitter. “I am appealing this action and expect to prevail. As we have throughout this process, my representatives & I respect the confidentiality of the proceedings.”

I’m not sure who — outside of Trevor Bauer and his repugnant followers — “wins” if the appeal is overturned, but Rob Manfred handed down the longest suspension in the history of the league’s domestic abuse policy. If upheld, it’d be one of the longest, if not the longest, suspensions of a player that wasn’t an outright ban.

If the appeal fails, however, Bauer will not get credit for time missed while on administrative leave, and he won’t be eligible to return to the field until 2024. He has been on leave since July of last year and has missed a total of 99 games.

Bauer has filed multiple defamation lawsuits, including against his accuser, her lawyer, Deadspin, The Athletic, and its former writer Molly Knight. This saga is far from over, but the longer his return to the diamond is caught up in appeals and bureaucracy, the better.