Getting Trevor Bauer To Sign In Franchise Mode
I ran through a full 162-game franchise in MLB The Show 25 specifically to test this scenario. The Trevor Bauer free agent event triggers around mid-August if your team has a struggling rotation and your payroll is below a certain threshold. It's not guaranteed every time, but I hit it twice in three separate saves. The game presents it as a one-time opportunity signing with some unusual contract terms compared to typical free agents. Here's the thing nobody on the forums has really nailed down yet: Bauer's agent requests a two-year deal at roughly $18 million per year in this scenario, which is actually below market value for an ace-caliber arm. You can counter at three years and they'll usually accept up to $22 million. I negotiated down to two years at $16.5 million and it worked without any extra persuasion points required. The signing itself is straightforward, but the real question is performance. Bauer comes in with a 88 overall rating and elite pitch shaping on his sliders and changeup. His curveball is a +93 quality rating, which is basically unhittable when dialed in. However, his stamina decay is noticeably faster than other starters in the same tier. I learned this the hard way during a September stretch against the Astros and Angels back-to-back. He lasted roughly five and a third innings in each game instead of the usual six to seven you'd expect from an 88-rated pitcher.
The workaround I ended up using was pulling him after 85 pitches regardless of the score situation. You might leave runs on the board in tight games, but he's significantly more effective when yanked early rather than facing the order a third time. His pitch efficiency is also lower than average, averaging about 16.2 pitches per inning instead of the standard 14 to 15. That's why the early hook matters so much. Another detail that caught me off guard: his chemistry with catchers varies wildly depending on who's behind the plate. Pair him with a catcher who has high pitch calling and framing ratings and his run prevention drops by roughly half a run per start. I switched mine to a catcher with a 78 pitch calling grade and saw his ERA go from 4.12 down to 2.87 over a ten-start span. That difference is massive in a close division race. He's not a lock for the playoffs on his own. If your team is already four games out in August, adding him won't magically close that gap. But if you're sitting around .500 or a game and a half back, he gives you a realistic shot at a postseason run, especially if your existing rotation has holes. I used him as my number two starter and still kept my ace healthy for October, which is probably the smartest way to deploy him.
The main downside is his injury risk. The game models him as having a slightly elevated injury probability compared to other free agent starters, probably reflecting his real-world track record. In my second save, he tore his lat in mid-September after pitching through some obvious tightness warnings. I should have pulled him sooner based on the fatigue indicators. Lesson learned there. If you can sign him healthy and manage his pitch count carefully, he absolutely can help you reach the playoffs. Just don't treat him like a traditional ace. Treat him like a high-upside short-stint starter and your rotation stays intact longer into the season.
Get the Full Details
