Bauer’s Trump theory gets sharp rebuttal from Yankees’ Michael Kay

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Trevor Bauer’s hopes for an MLB return have hit a familiar roadblock—zero interest from teams, including the pitching-depleted New York Yankees. However, the former Cy Young winner has now shifted the blame for his continued exile, claiming that his support for US President Donald Trump is the reason no MLB team will sign him.

Bauer also got support from Republican Congressman Eric Burlison, who wrote to the MLB supporting the pitcher’s claim.

This theory has been widely dismissed across the baseball community, but one of the strongest rebuttals came from Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay. During a segment on his ESPN radio show, Kay firmly rejected Bauer’s claim, arguing that MLB’s lack of interest in the right-hander has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with his baggage.

Michael Kay’s take on Bauer’s controversial claim

Speaking candidly on The Michael Kay Show, the longtime voice of the Yankees didn’t hold back when addressing Bauer’s political blackballing claim.

“Trevor Bauer has made all these different excuses about why major league teams aren’t signing him,” he told.“ And the latest one was no one wants to sign him because he supports Donald Trump. And my eyes rolled into the back of my head when I heard that because if teams didn’t want players who supported Donald Trump, wait for it, everybody, they’d have a hard time fielding a starting nine. The vast majority of athletes in Major League Baseball are conservative and very much in the corner of the President of the United States. So I mean, Bauer is just, he’s grasping at straws. There’s got to be stuff there that no one wants to touch.”

Kay went on to highlight a fundamental flaw in Bauer’s argument, pointing out that a majority of MLB players lean conservative and support Trump. He ultimately dismissed Bauer’s latest excuse as a desperate attempt to shift the blame away from his well-documented off-field issues.

Bauer’s baggage: A roadblock to an MLB return

Bauer, who hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since 2021, was handed a 194-game suspension for violating MLB’s domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse policy. While he was never criminally charged, and civil claims were later settled, his reputation took a massive hit, leading to his release from the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2023.

Since then, Bauer has continued pitching internationally, first in Japan (2023) and most recently in Mexico (2024), where he won Pitcher of the Year. Despite his efforts to rebuild his career, MLB teams have not shown interest—including the Yankees, who are in desperate need of starting pitching.

This has led Bauer to push the Trump-support theory, suggesting that his political stance has made him undesirable to MLB franchises.

However, Bauer’s critics argue that his past legal troubles, along with his divisive personality, have made him a public relations nightmare—a risk that no team, including those in need of pitching, is willing to take.

Would Bauer even fit in New York? The Yankees don’t think so

While the Yankees are scrambling to patch together a rotation after losing Gerrit Cole (Tommy John surgery), Luis Gil (lat strain), and Clarke Schmidt (shoulder fatigue), Bauer is not in their plans.

According to NJ Advance Media’s Bob Klapisch, Bauer’s name has never even come up internally despite the Yankees’ urgent need for pitching. A source familiar with the Yankees’ thinking told Klapisch:

“Bauer brings too much baggage, even for a team that’s desperate for an ace.”

Beyond his off-field controversies, Bauer’s personality is another major concern. The Yankees reportedly believe he wouldn’t mesh well with two key clubhouse figures:

• Aaron Judge – The Yankees’ captain is known for his disciplined, no-drama leadership style, making Bauer’s outspoken and sometimes controversial behavior a poor clubhouse fit.
• Gerrit Cole – Bauer and Cole were teammates at UCLA, but their relationship has been rocky for years. Cole dislikes Bauer, and their history of public clashes would make for an uncomfortable dynamic in the Yankees’ clubhouse. Even without Cole in the rotation, the Yankees have zero interest in adding Bauer, despite their urgent need for an established starter.

Final thoughts: Bauer’s MLB future becomes more uncertain

Trevor Bauer’s belief that his political views have kept him out of baseball has been strongly disputed by insiders, with Michael Kay offering one of the most blunt rejections yet.

Instead of politics, it’s Bauer’s past controversies, clubhouse reputation, and MLB suspension that continue to keep him out of the league. While his talent may warrant another shot in the majors, no team seems willing to take the risk—especially the Yankees, who have a clubhouse culture they’re keen to protect.

As for Bauer, unless a desperate team decides to take a gamble, his future in MLB remains uncertain—and as of now, it appears that his comeback attempt will remain overseas rather than in the Bronx.

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