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If there’s a problem between Trevor Bauer and Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, it’s not Bauer’s beef.
That’s what the new National League’s Cy Young Award winner said shortly after the Baseball Writers Association of America gave him the honor on Wednesday night. Bauer became the first Reds pitcher to win the award, going 5-4 with a 1.73 ERA in 11 starts.
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Bauer, now a free agent, said he was cool with Cole despite their feud during their days at UCLA.
“I have nothing wrong with Gerrit,” Bauer said on a conference call with reporters. “We had our differences in college and that was nine or 10 years ago at this point. I am a different person now than I was then. I’m sure the same is true of him.
In an interview with Sports Illustrated in 2019, Bauer said Cole tore him apart in front of his freshman teammates for not doing the Bruins’ strength training program. The bad blood lasted the rest of their time at UCLA.
Now? Bauer said there was no problem between the two.
In fact, there is simply no relationship.
“He’s living his life and I’m living mine,” Bauer said.
The Yankees gave Cole, the Cy Young’s fourth finalist, a nine-year, $ 324 million contract last offseason. He will stay a long time.
This means Bauer and Cole would have to share a clubhouse in the Bronx if Bauer signed with the Yankees. UCLA head coach John Savage recently told NJ Advance Media that he believes Cole and Bauer will be able to put their differences aside and play together in New York.
Bauer said he would speak with Cole before agreeing to a deal with the Yankees.
“At the end of the day, I want to win,” Bauer said. “I hate to lose. It drives me crazy and it’s pretty obvious to watch him pitch and see his playoff performances and see how good he is that he feels the same. I think when you watch it try to win a World Series, which is one of my goals every year, you want to bring together the strongest competitors, you want to bring together the best talent and go see what you can do.
“Of course, if I was given the opportunity to do that and play alongside him again, I’d be more than open to it. I just want to win. I want to be happy doing this, but that’s kind of how I feel about it. I don’t think there is anything between us at least on my side. I certainly can’t speak for Gerrit. At least on my side, there is nothing between us.
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