Longest suspensions in Major League Baseball history

Trevor Bauer receives suspension twice as long as any player before him in Major League Baseball’s history.

Nearly a year after his last game, Major League Baseball announced Friday that they were handing down a two-year/324-game suspension for Trevor Bauer.

Excluding people given a lifetime ban, Bauer’s suspension is officially the longest for any player.

The league determined that Bauer violated their Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse Policy, which has been in effect since August 2015. Before the policy’s existence, the only MLB player ever disciplined outright was Wil Cordero, who the Boston Red Sox suspended and eventually released at the end of the 1997 season.

Bauer’s suspension will not include games missed, which is noteworthy considering his repeated paid administrative leave stints spanned 99 games. His ninth extension of leave would have expired Friday. He will be the first player to appeal his suspension since the policy was established over six years ago, according to a tweet he made following the announcement.

Every MLB suspension since the Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse Policy began in 2015:

• Aroldis Chapman: 30 games (March 2016)
• José Reyes: 51 games (May 2016)
• Héctor Olivera: 82 games (May 2016)
• Jeurys Familia: 15 games (March 2017)
• Derek Norris: the remainder of the season (September 2017)
• Steven Wright: 15 games (March 2018)
• José Torres: 100 games (June 2018)
• Roberto Osuna: 75 games (June 2018)
• Addison Russell: 40 games (September 2018)
• Odúbel Herrera: The remainder of the season (July 2019)
• Julio Urías: 20 games (August 2019)
• Domingo Germán: 81 games (January 2020)
• Sam Dyson: 162 games (March 2021)
• Trevor Bauer: 324 games (April 2022)

On the whole, MLB has handed down longer suspensions to players who violate the Joint Drug Agreement. Alex Rodriguez, Jenrry Mejia (eventually banned), Marlon Byrd, Francis Martes, and Robinson Cano all received 162-game penalties, and 100+ game suspensions were levied against Miguel Tejada, Manny Ramirez, and Guillermo Mota.

Since the league adopted their DV policy in 2015, they’ve been criticized for appearing to take violence, abuse, and assault less seriously than PEDs. A PED suspension bars the player from that year’s postseason, while the same rule was not in effect until Herrera’s suspension in 2019. Chapman, the first player suspended under the new policy, returned early in the season and won a World Series ring with the Chicago Cubs that year. Wright, Osuna, and Urías also appeared in the postseason the years they were suspended.

Yes, Bauer’s suspension eclipses any suspension before. But, it’s worth noting that almost everyone on the list with him continued their careers when their suspensions ended. Chapman, Familia, Herrera, Urías, and Germán are still in the Majors. Torres, Osuna, and Russell are continuing their careers in the Mexican League.

With Bauer declaring his intent to appeal his suspension, this story will continue to develop.