Los Angeles Dodgers cut ties with embattled pitcher Trevor Bauer

The Los Angeles Dodgers officially cut ties Friday with starting pitcher Trevor Bauer, the embattled former Cy Young Award winner who was handed an unprecedented suspension following allegations of sexual assault.

Bauer was designated for assignment, which means the Dodgers have until 2 p.m. ET on Thursday to find a trade partner. If they can't, Bauer will be placed on unconditional release waivers. If he clears those, he'll be officially released and become a free agent the following day, which is considered the likely scenario.

The Dodgers' decision came two weeks after an independent arbitrator trimmed Bauer's suspension from 324 games to 194, reinstating him immediately but docking his pay for the remaining 50 games to begin the 2023 season. The ruling triggered a 14-day window for the Dodgers to decide whether to add him to their 40-man roster.

They stretched their decision right up until Friday's deadline, ultimately choosing a route that had been widely expected throughout the industry for the last several months.

"The Dodgers organization believes that allegations of sexual assault or domestic violence should be thoroughly investigated, with due process given to the accused," the team said in a statement Friday. "From the beginning, we have fully cooperated with Major League Baseball's investigation and strictly followed the process stipulated under MLB's Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy.

Two extensive reviews of all the available evidence in this case -- one by Commissioner Manfred and another by a neutral arbitrator -- concluded that Mr. Bauer's actions warranted the longest ever active player suspension in our sport for violations of this policy. Now that this process has been completed, and after careful consideration, we have decided that he will no longer be part of our organization."

Bauer says he was told by Dodgers leadership on Thursday that they "wanted me to return and pitch for the team this year."

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