Trevor Bauer uses Fernando Tatis Jr. contract to rant about ‘gossip’ blogs

The Los Angeles Dodgers’ chief rival in San Diego made a bold move on Wednesday to lock in face of the franchise Fernando Tatis Jr. for the next 14 years.

By any metric, it was a bold call, and the Padres proved money isn’t an object, happily paying the 22-year-old Tatis through his age-35 season.

When the news dropped, new LAD righty Trevor Bauer was immediately upset.

Because the rivalry just heated up? Well, no. Mostly about…perceived haters of the way he and Rachel Luba negotiate their contracts, as well as “gossip blogs” that have criticized his methods.

We are so bored of this already.

Bauer’s extended rant began with an observation about the large sums Tatis Jr. will have to pay his agent over the coming years, though the shortstop’s take home will obviously be quite large and comes with an impressive level of security.

Instead, Bauer pivoted to breaking down the intrinsic value of Tatis Jr.’s agency, arguing once again that they way he pays Rachel Luba (less money for her) is the better way to establish a client-agent relationship.

https://twitter.com/BauerOutage/status/1362250368722243585?s=20

Just a strange reaction to have, from an outsider’s perspective. No matter the news, Bauer always seems to find a way to feel aggrieved.

The reaction to Tatis Jr.’s deal was largely two-sided. “Wow, seems like a bold overpay!” vs. “Get that money!” is a fairly straightforward dichotomy. But you’d better believe Bauer and Luba injected themselves into the proceedings to let you know more about the intractable and innovative way they negotiate contracts.

Bauer proceeded to break down Tatis Jr.’s earnings in painstaking detail for the better part of the evening.

And, yes, Bauer really hates The Athletic — and he also knows full well his followers will defend him and accuse the site of “political attacks” no matter what issue they’re raising with the righty’s behavior. Somehow, by the end of this economics discussion, we were right back to trashing the publication as a “gossip blog,” and the rest of the world was left wondering how we got here.

https://twitter.com/BauerOutage/status/1362264354972790786?s=20

Bauer, pending opt outs, will be the highest-paid player in MLB history over the course of the next two years. Hourly rate or not, that’s a very impressive take home.

But Bauer’s three guaranteed years at the age of 30 aren’t at all comparable to Tatis Jr.’s 14 years of security, accrued at the age of 22. And no one would’ve equated them…except Bauer, who wanted to lecture everyone on the minutiae of the negotiating process, emphasize his intelligence, and take potshots at an old segment from an Athletic piece.

Yeah, we’re going to be in for a lot of this over the course of the next two years.