Trevor Bauer's signing by Long Island Ducks a 'bold move,' but it's paying off

Trevor Bauer isn’t pitching for the Long Island Ducks because he wants to. He is doing it because if he wants to play baseball in this country, he has to.

And the Ducks, the independent minor league team that professes to offer fan-friendly entertainment, are finding the risk of signing the former Cy Young Award winner with a controversial past to be worth the reward.

Bauer, 35, has not appeared in the major leagues since June 28, 2021, when he was placed on administrative leave after sexual assault allegations were made against him. After an investigation, Major League Baseball imposed a historic 324-game suspension that was later reduced to 194 following an appeal.

No criminal charges were filed against Bauer, and he maintains his innocence. There were also numerous controversies and abrasive online comments he made prior to that incident throughout his career.

Now, Bauer is pitching in front of sellout crowds in Central Islip, and fans are lining up for his autograph, seemingly unconcerned about his controversial past.

There haven’t been any protests over the signing. No one pickets outside the stadium before his starts. No one canceled ticket plans over it. The only calls he fields with questions about the decision to sign Bauer come from media outlets, Ducks president and chief business officer Michael Pfaff told Newsday.

"We look at what the facts are,"  Pfaff said. "He is eligible to pitch in Major League Baseball. He is eligible to pitch in the Atlantic League. He is a 10-year major league veteran, a Cy Young Award winner. And he has a massive social media following."

Bauer said he has been "blackballed" by Major League Baseball and is back in the U.S. after playing three seasons in Japan and Mexico, with various levels of success.

"There was no meteor that hit the stadium," Bauer said in one of the recent videos he posted online. "Apparently those fears have been massively overstated, I think. Imagine that — I can pitch in America and not have massive protests and get canceled and whatever else."

Bauer’s one-year contract with the Ducks pays him a base salary of $3,000 per month, his agent, Rachel Luba, said. That is the Atlantic League maximum. He also earns money from a content partnership with the league and generates revenue through his YouTube channel, which has 1.16 million subscribers.

'People are buying tickets'

There were 6,146 fans at Fairfield Properties Ballpark in Central Islip on May 2 to watch him pitch, the second Ducks sellout of the early season. The first was on opening night, when Bauer pitched and they drew 6,896. So far he’s 2-for-2 in that regard, and the Ducks lead the Atlantic League in home attendance. Those two games probably would have been close to sellouts without him, but in the seven other home games in which he did not pitch, the Ducks have averaged 3,513 fans.

"There is no question our business has been positively impacted by having him here," Pfaff said. "People are buying tickets to see Trevor pitch. That’s unique. Quite often the Ducks fanbase is more casual, and now you are drawing in pure baseball fans who follow Trevor and his story and want to see him pitch stateside for the first time in a long time."

It’s not just ticket sales. The Ducks had 81,794 followers on their three primary social media accounts (Facebook, X, Instagram) before they announced his arrival April 2; as of last Monday that number was 105,858, an increase of nearly 30%. And when Bauer pitched a seven-inning no-hitter for the Ducks in late April, it made national headlines for both the player and the team.

"I would say he has performed well both on and off the field for us," Pfaff said. "He has a lot of eyeballs on him, that’s for sure. There is a lot of interest in following him. That only helps the Ducks."

Some outside observers, though, are "shocked" by the team’s decision to not just add but aggressively promote a "polarizing figure" such as Bauer.

'Bold move' to sign Bauer

Daniel Kelly II is a clinical professor and associate dean at NYU’s Tisch Institute for Global Sport. He said the Ducks have a reputation in professional baseball for signing players and managers who, for one reason or another, have been exiled from the majors: John Rocker, Daniel Murphy, Dontrelle Willis, Wally Backman and Rich Hill among them.

"They have been known to take on a lot of reclamation projects," Kelly told Newsday. "It’s not like they don’t give second chances."

But Bauer’s past, he added, makes this signing "a bit surprising" given the Ducks’ longtime commitment to affordable wholesome entertainment.

"He has a lot of controversial history aside from what got him suspended," Kelly said. "That doesn’t really lend itself to family values ... This just seems to go against the norm for them."

Sam Feliz, a sports operations professional from Farmingdale who has worked with the Dominican Republic’s team in the World Baseball Classic and for FIFA’s upcoming World Cup events in New Jersey this summer, told Newsday it was a "bold move" for the Ducks to sign a "polarizing figure" such as Bauer.

"We know them as a family-oriented environment," Feliz said of the Ducks. "But it seems like they did their homework on him and were comfortable with the risk."

'Content mode'

Bauer is wearing a live microphone and having cameras follow him — even while he pitches — to collect behind-the-scenes footage for videos he posts on his online channels. The Atlantic League is soon launching its own channel, DugoutTV, and Bauer’s content will be available there too.

"Unprecedented access to a player on the Ducks is something that I think is pretty unique and very interesting for fans to see," Pfaff said.

Many of the young fans who came to see Bauer pitch on May 2 said they know him more as a YouTube star than a Cy Young winner.

Bauer, meanwhile, toggles between what he calls "content mode," or the showmanship part of his game that includes antics and in-game analysis, and "competition mode" when he gets serious about pitching.

"I prefer to be in content mode," he said. "It’s fun."

Kelly, however, called it a "marketing ploy" and a "money grab" by the Ducks.

"It just seems that this is more than just about baseball," Kelly said. "I am shocked about the marketing side of this, and I am definitely shocked about the content side. But maybe as an independent league club this is how they compete to be able to continue to provide these opportunities."

Return to majors?

Bauer’s goal remains to get back to the majors, but he is not expecting it to happen soon.

"I’m so over the frustration with it," Bauer said of his exile. "It’s been five years now. It is what it is."

Others think any of his Ducks starts could be his last and he should have his one-year contract with the team purchased by a major-league club, following the path of over 100 other former Ducks players since 2000.

"I hope he gets signed right away," Ducks manager Lew Ford said. "I think that’d be great for everyone involved with it. I think he can still pitch. He’s pitching great for us. I hope teams take notice and he goes on to have more success."

In 10 big-league seasons, Bauer had an 83-69 career record with a 3.79 ERA. In 2021, his last year in MLB, he went 8-5 with a 2.59 ERA in 17 starts for the Dodgers. 

Bauer reached the upper 90s on his fastballs and struck out 10 in six innings for a win over the Lexington Legends on May 2, toying with a lineup that didn’t have a single batter who had reached the majors. His seven-inning no-hitter in the first game of a road doubleheader against the Lancaster Stormers on April 26 was just the ninth no-hitter in Atlantic League history. While none of it is reflective of what he could accomplish if he were back in the majors, it’s certainly opened some eyes.

Said Pfaff: “[Bauer] wanted to pitch in front of American fans for the first time in five years. He wanted to have the best showcase. That’s why he chose the Ducks. And we just want to help him achieve that ultimate goal of getting another opportunity on the major-league level."

Sexual assault allegations

On July 2, 2021, Major League Baseball placed Bauer on paid administrative leave after a San Diego woman, Lindsey Hill, accused him of assaulting her during two consensual sexual encounters that later turned violent. Bauer denied any wrongdoing.

In February 2022, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file criminal charges against Bauer, citing a lack of evidence. Bauer then sued Hill for defamation, and she responded in a counterclaim, alleging sexual battery.

Multiple other women subsequently made allegations of sexual assault against Bauer, leading to the unprecedented 324-game suspension His suspension was reduced by an arbitrator to 194 games, but the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had signed to him to a three-year, $102 million contract, released him.

In 2023, Bauer and Hill settled with neither party admitting wrongdoing and no money changing hands, attorneys confirmed at the time. But the following year, Bauer filed a new lawsuit against Hill for breaching the terms of the agreement when she stated 22 separate times, largely online, that she had received money from the pitcher as part of a settlement. Last June, a Los Angeles judge awarded Bauer almost $310,000 in a default judgment. Hill, who did not participate in the case, has said Bauer will never see the money.

Another woman, Darcy Adanna Esemonu, filed a lawsuit against Bauer in 2022, alleging he sexually assaulted her in 2020, leading to an "unplanned pregnancy." Bauer countersued, alleging fraud and extortion. Esemonu was charged criminally in 2024 with defrauding Bauer, who reportedly paid $10,000 for "medical expenses, prenatal vitamins and car services" related to the pregnancy. Bauer contends the pregnancy never occurred and that she was attempting to extort money from him after the allegations of other women. The case is scheduled for trial in October, court records show.

Wendy Linsalata, executive director of L.I. Against Domestic Violence, said it's incredibly difficult for survivors of domestic or sexual violence to come forward, particularly when the person they're accusing has the benefit of celebrity, wealth or stature.

"We still need to work on recognizing that anyone can be an offender of sexual violence or domestic violence. It doesn't matter their stature, their background, their level of education," said Linsalata, adding that she's not familiar with the details of Bauer's case or the specifics of Hill's allegations. "We still have a long way to go to help people and spread the knowledge."

The absence of criminal charges against an offender — or even the prospect of a victim initially providing, and later revoking, consent — makes little difference when deciding to believe domestic violence claims, she said.

"Consent is revocable at any time," Linsalata said. "So even if it's something that the victim consents to at the time, at any point when somebody says the word 'stop' or 'no,' it's a hard stop. Period."

Separately, Bauer is active on social media, from his vocal support of President Donald Trump, criticism of Apple and Twitter (before it was called X) for what he alleged was a liberal bias, skepticism about climate change and his denial that former President Barack Obama was born in the United States.

In the aftermath of his no-hitter for the Ducks, Bauer was back again on X. 

Damn. Tough week for the Bauer haters.

“He’s washed” -> no hitter
“Teammates hate him” -> endorsement from a first ballot hall of famer
“Velo isn’t there” - sits 95 touches 99 with 10ks

Sold out crowds. Sold out autograph sessions. Vlogs on fire. Life is good right now.…

— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) May 3, 2026

"Damn. Tough week for the Bauer haters," he posted. “‘He’s washed.’ -> no hitter. ‘Teammates hate him’ -> endorsement from first ballot hall of famer. ‘Velo isn’t there.’ -sits 95 touches 99 with 10ks. Sold out crowds. Sold out autograph sessions. Vlogs on fire. Life is good right now."

'This is amazing for Long Island'

As fireworks burst in the night sky after the Ducks' win on May 2,  Bauer was signing postgame autographs on jerseys, gloves, caps and ticket stubs.

Brendan McNamara’s 12-year-old son, Cooper, was in that scrum. The Stony Brook residents came to the ballpark that evening with three goals in mind: Watch the game, have fun and get Bauer’s autograph. "This is amazing for Long Island," McNamara said as Cooper gleefully held up his imprinted Ducks hat to show he’d accomplished the mission.

Dan Rapisarda of Ronkonkoma and Anthony Hussey of Lake Grove had their sons, 9 and 10, with them too.

"He’s a big draw," Anthony Hussey said of Bauer.

Customer experiences like those are why Pfaff called the Bauer signing "overwhelmingly positive."

There are still plenty of spaces where Bauer is scorned and unforgiven; a glance at the comments on his many social media postings indicates as much. Ducks games on Long Island, though, do not appear to be among them.

Fans did not seem to notice or care why he is here and why he isn't pitching in the majors. Or why the Ducks signed and promote a player with such a dubious past.

Hussey said he was aware of Bauer’s backstory as he watched his son and all the others clamor for a memento from the evening.

"We’re just here to watch the baseball," he said. "If he brings something to Long Island baseball and the Ducks, then it’s worth it."

Newsday's Robert Brodsky contributed to this story.