Trevor Bauer, the former Cy Young Award winner and MLB All-Star, tossed a no-hitter for the independent Long Island Ducks in a 13-0 win over the Lancaster Stormers on Sunday afternoon at Penn Medicine Park in Pennsylvania.
It was just Bauer’s second start in the United States since 2021, and he faced just one batter over the minimum in a scheduled seven-inning game of a doubleheader against the Stormers.
Bauer threw 84 pitches, striking out seven hitters and walking just one to lose out on the perfect game.
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But Bauer unleashed a roar on the mound after a called strike three to notch the third no-hitter in Ducks history.
Combined with his first outing for the Ducks on April 21, Bauer has a strong 1.64 ERA to start the season in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB), which is a “Professional Partner League” of MLB.
Fans might have been supporting the opposing Stormers, but they understood what was at stake as Bauer was mowing down hitters throughout his start. They were even heard chanting his name at one point, hoping he could keep his hitless streak alive.
After the game, Bauer returned the favor for those at the Pennsylvania ballpark, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans after entering his name into the Ducks’ record books.
TREVOR BAUER SIGNS WITH PRO BASEBALL TEAM IN UNITED STATES AMID MLB RETURN HOPES
“I’m looking forward to competing in front of U.S. fans again this season,” said Bauer when he signed with the Ducks earlier this month. “The Ducks have had some incredible players come through their organization, and I’m excited to be part of that tradition.”
Ex-MLB stars like Dontrelle Willis, Daniel Murphy, Rich Hill and Eric Gagne have played for the Ducks in the past. New York Mets legends Gary Carter and Bud Harrelson both managed the team, with the latter also being a part-owner.
Bauer’s first start for the Ducks impressed an AL team scout in attendance, saying he was pretty impressed by Bauer’s arsenal on the bump.
“He showed flashes of the guy he used to be and a guy who can help a club,” the scout told the New York Post. “He went out and handled himself well. He showed flashes of the breaking ball he had in the past. Certainly the velocity is not what it once was, but it’s still solid, mostly 92-94. He didn’t throw the ball particularly well on the inside part of the plate with his fastball, but I think it was a really good first outing. You’d expected him to get sharper and probably tick up in velocity.
“You’re talking about a guy who was at the top of the game. Is he back there? No, but he looked like a guy who could go out and compete.”
Bauer pitched in Japan in both 2023 and 2025, while a stint in Mexico came in 2024. He pitched to a 2.59 ERA and 9.2 K/9 in Japan in 2023, and in Mexico, those numbers improved to 2.48 and 13.0. Last year in Japan, though, his ERA shot up to 4.41, and he struck out just 8.2 batters per nine innings.
This June will mark five years since Bauer, as the reigning Cy Young Award winner, last appeared in an MLB game. On June 28 of that year, he tossed six innings of two-run ball while striking out eight batters, recording the win.
Two days later, Bauer was hit with sexual assault allegations, which eventually led to a 324-game suspension (the equivalent of two seasons). It was eventually reduced to 184 games for violating the league’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy.
Bauer has maintained his innocence, settling with one accuser while another is facing 16 years in prison after being charged with fraud for faking a pregnancy and asking Bauer for money for an abortion.
Bauer and Lindsey Hill, who accused the pitcher of beating and sexually abusing her in 2021, settled their case in late 2023. Bauer revealed texts from Hill, who said that Bauer would be her “next victim,” among other damning messages. Hill has since said that MLB has more evidence of Bauer’s alleged misconduct.
Last June, Hill was ordered to pay Bauer more than $300,000 for violating settlement terms. Hill breached their settlement agreement with each other by discussing Bauer on podcasts and in public appearances, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Nearly two years ago, Bauer said he “may have no other choice” but to sue Major League Baseball “if I continue being kept out” of the league. Bauer has said he’d “play for the league minimum,” but he has yet to sign with an MLB team.
“Anyone that’s willing to sit down with me and listen: I’d like to play the second half of my career in a better way than I played the first half,” Bauer told Fox News Digital in January 2024. “I’d like to be an example that you can make mistakes, recognize them, adjust and then be better in the future. I think that’s something us as humans have to do and should be doing constantly.”
Bauer has since called out MLB after Pete Rose and other deceased former players were taken off the league’s permanently ineligible list.
“So, since Pete is welcome back now, does that go for everyone who has been blackballed?” Bauer asked on X. “Or do you actually have to be guilty of something to qualify for that?”
Bauer was performing well for the Dodgers at the time of the allegations, pitching to a 2.59 ERA.
Fox News’ Ryan Morik contributed to this report.
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