Cincinnati Reds: If Trevor Bauer wants to be taken seriously, now is the time
If Cincinnati Reds ace Trevor Bauer is going to be respected as a big-game pitcher, now is his time to prove his worth.
Trevor Bauer had a great regular season. If he pitches poorly in the playoffs and the Cincinnati Reds make an ugly first-round exit, his regular-season won’t mean much. Time for him to prove himself on the biggest stage he’s been on in two years.
Even though the Reds haven’t been here in a while (last postseason appearance was in 2013), the man they’ll send to the mound for their first-round matchup with the Atlanta Braves has been.
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Trevor Bauer has ten games of postseason experience under his belt. Most recently he toed the rubber for the Cleveland Indians in the 2018 playoffs. Two years prior, he pitched in the World Series against the Chicago Cubs. He is no stranger to pitching in big games.
He has been on the wrong end of some bad luck in the playoffs and hasn’t exactly put his best foot forward either.
On the heels of his stellar 2020 campaign, Bauer has the opportunity to rewrite his reputation as a big-game pitcher.
Bauer will garner Cy Young consideration for the numbers he put up this year. A league-best 1.73 earned run average. A league-best .80 WHIP. A career-best 12.3 K/9. His WAR is top-10 amongst pitchers.
For all his accolades during the regular season, they will go for not if he lays an egg when he takes the mound against the Braves.
The Braves postseason woes have been well documented, putting these two storylines on a collision course. Something will have to give. For Bauer, the big game pitching is one aspect, the looming free agency is another. If Bauer can control the tempo of the game, silence the Atlanta bats, and give the Reds a leg up in this series, he’ll take a large step towards earning a good payday this offseason.
The Reds will do everything they can to bring back Bauer, though with a strong postseason performance he will drive the price up.
Next. Twins set mark for postseason futility. dark
With the jury still out on Cincinnati Reds ace Trevor Bauer, we may draw closer to a verdict after this start against Atlanta.