3 free agents San Diego Padres should target in 2021 offseason

Trevor Bauer

The starting pitching market next offseason is not that great, especially compared to this past offseason we just went through with Strasburg and Gerrit Cole.

But Trevor Bauer is likely to be at the top of that list going into next offseason as he’ll be just 29 years old (but will be 30 before the start of the 2021 season).

It took Bauer a while to become a top of the rotation starting pitcher as he hovered around a 4.20 ERA from 2014-2017 with the Cleveland Indians.

He took his game to another level in 2018 when he posted a 2.21 ERA in 175.1 innings with 221 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.09.

This past season he had a 3.79 ERA in 24 starts with the Indians punching out 185 batters in 156.2 innings.

But he really struggled after being traded to the Reds with a 6.39 ERA in 56.1 innings with 68 strikeouts.

For his career he has an ERA of 4.04 in 1,117 innings with 1,179 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.30.

How he bounces back in 2020 will go a long way in determining just how much he’ll make next offseason.

If he looks anything like the pitcher he was in 2018 then he probably gets a six-year deal for around $25 million a year.

But if he struggles again, he could potentially take a one-year deal to try and reset his market value.