Phillies among Trevor Bauer's top 5 potential landing spots
Trevor Bauer is probably the most polarizing individual in baseball right now, but even when you factor in a relatively underwhelming 2019 campaign, FanGraphs says that he's been the sixth-best pitcher in the sport since the start of the 2018 season.
That means that when he hits free agency this winter, he'll be a coveted asset for teams that feel they are a piece or two away from being a World Series contender.
Bauer, who will turn 30 in January, has previously suggested that he only wanted to sign one-year contracts throughout his career. However, after a season that has him in the running for the National League Cy Young Award, Rachel Luba, his agent, made the following declaration: "We are open to & will be considering ALL types of deals."
John Harper of SNY spoke to multiple anonymous baseball people this week, who thought the seven-year/$245 million deal that Stephen Strasburg signed to stay with the Washington Nationals last offseason could be a fair comp. Of course, Bauer isn't the reigning World Series MVP, and a year later the Strasburg extension looks pretty bleak. But the larger point here is that if Bauer gets an offer of five or more years at $30+ million per season, it's hard to imagine him turning that down and insisting on a one-year deal. But who knows exactly what Bauer will do.
What we do know is that Bauer appears likely to price his way out of Cincinnati this offseason, and it's interesting to think about his fit - both on and off the field - for a few major-market teams:
