Trevor Bauer explains why he didn’t sign with New York Mets
By John Buhler
Trevor Bauer did his best to explain to New York Mets fans why he did not sign with them in a lengthy Super Bowl 55 news drop apology over Twitter.
Even though Trevor Bauer went back to his native California in his free agency by signing with the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, he took ownership for how he may have led the New York Mets and their fans astray throughout the process.
The reigning NL Cy Young winner formerly of the Cincinnati Reds was going to sign with the Dodgers or the Mets. For a minute there, it seemed like Bauer was going to The Big Apple. However, confusion between him, his representation and marketing team made Mets fans look like chumps. Bauer apologized for the way things turned out on Twitter during the Super Bowl.
Mets fans, I owe you an explanation and apology.
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
My intention this entire offseason was to engage with fans in ways that made the off season and free agent process more interesting. I woke up early on Friday not knowing what my decision would be and spent the next 5 hours on
the phone with my representation team trying to figure that out. I wasn’t on social media or my website, as my marketing and digital team was managing both at the time, so I didn’t see what happened until after the fact. I’ve taken some time over the last two days to figure it
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
out, and I take full responsibility for the mistakes outlined below. In the spirit of transparency, here’s what happened:
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
Throughout the free agency process, my team prepared marketing materials for multiple organizations, as I didn’t know where or when I would sign. In order to
be prepared for a moment that could materialize very quickly, we had uploaded many of those to my website on the back-end. The plan was not to have those pages live until a decision had been made, which is obviously not what happened. That was the first mistake. The plan was to
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
release a link to my website and the appropriate materials via linktree on my Instagram page once my decision was finalized. Unfortunately, that link was posted in error well before any decision had been made. That was the second mistake. Understandably, the link was quickly
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
discovered and began to spread on social media.
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
The resulting confusion is understandable and regrettable. My intention was never to mislead your fan base, nor was it to troll you in any way. I had a fantastic time engaging with fans from many teams over the last few months and
Mets fans priced to be as passionate and energetic a bunch as any, so I offer my sincerest apologies for how the events Friday played out. I have no control over false media reports stating a contract was in place or that terms had been agreed to, but I do accept responsibility
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
for the errors above. It was an embarrassing and emotional moment for me.
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
For those of you who entered the giveaway, you will be entered into a raffle for game tickets next time the Dodgers play the Mets (and fans are able to be in stadium). I will also be donating $10,000 each
to the following New York-based nonprofits:
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC @BBBSNYC
STEM Kids NYC @stemkidsnyc
The Get Schooled Foundation @getschooled
Variety Boys & Girls Club of Queens @vbgcq
I look forward to my next visit to Citi Field and hope to hear you just as
loud in person, even if it’s not in cheers for me.
— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) February 8, 2021
Trevor Bauer did not need to apologize to Mets fans for this
The MLB at its very core is a business. Anybody who is a fan of all 30 teams know this. . .or should know this. Bauer was the top free-agent starting pitcher on the market and a high-priced bidding war was inevitable. While the Mets have had a strong offseason by signing catcher James McCann and trading for shortstop Francisco Lindor, their fan base is bitter Bauer did not sign with them.
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Had the Mets gotten Bauer in free agency, they would have certainly closed the gap on the Atlanta Braves in the NL East. For now, they are very much in the mix to make the postseason as a wild card team. With Bauer going to the Dodgers, they are without question the presumptive favorites to repeat as World Series champions. Once again, the rich got richer in 2021 MLB free agency.
Bauer did not need to apologize during the middle of the Super Bowl to appease to Mets fans.