CLEVELAND, Ohio — Trevor Bauer continues to bang the drum (not trash can) about pitchers using sticky substances to increase spin rates in Major League Baseball, and he’s still got the Houston Astros staff in his sights.
In an HBO Real Sports profile set to air Tuesday titled “Revenge of the Nerd,” the ex-Indians pitcher maintains that members of the Astros are hypocrites for the way they responded to his 2018 accusations of using banned substances in games to dramatically up their ability to manipulate the baseball.
The 15-minute piece delves into Bauer’s background and upbringing as an outcast in school and in the baseball community. It introduces viewers to his father, Warren, a petroleum engineer who helped mold Bauer into a pitching phenom when he was a teen and who continues to be a major influence in his game today. Real Sports correspondent Bernie Goldberg calls Warren “His partner in the great experiment.”
The piece does not focus much on Bauer’s seven seasons in Cleveland, but mentions his achievements in pitching during the 2016 World Series and making the 2018 All-Star team for the American League. Bauer’s infamous drone accident during the 2016 postseason is notably absent from the segment.
On background, Goldberg paints Bauer as an athlete who is constantly in conflict with the baseball establishment, including his past coaches, but not specifically mentioning anybody from the Indians organization.
“I’ve had coaches along the way that actively go out of their way to make sure I don’t succeed,” Bauer says. “They don’t like me. That’s it.”
HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel airs Tuesday at 10 p.m.
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