What we know and don't know about the two-season ban

Bauer, a pitcher for the Dodgers, was suspended for more than 300 games by MLB on Friday. The two full seasons ban is the longest punishment under the sport's domestic violence policy.

Bauer will appeal the suspension. He is the first player to appeal a punishment.

What does the suspension mean for Bauer and the Dodgers?

Bauer has been on administrative leave. Does the suspension include the time Bauer has already missed?

Bauer will not be allowed to return until the 19th game of the 2024 season, because the playoffs do not count. Bauer missed the last 81 regular-season games in 2021 and the first 18 in 2022. He was paid his full salary. The period will not count as time served because he is appealing the suspension.

What will happen now that Bauer is appealing?

Because he did not agree to the suspension, Bauer can file a grievance to be judged by the league and the players' union. The MLB will present its own case, while Bauer's side will present its own. The decision will be rendered by the arbitrator. The domestic violence policy does not specify when this hearing needs to take place, and there is no timetable at the moment. An automatic stay for an appeal of a PED suspension does not exist in the league's domestic violence policy, so Bauer will not be able to pitch during the process.

What does the suspension mean for Bauer's contract with the Dodgers?

The Dodgers will probably not have to pay anything other than what they already have if the MLB suspension is upheld. Los Angeles paid him his full $38 million salary last year and has paid him $4 million this year. A source said that the latter number would be used to calculate how much Bauer counts to the Dodgers. The third of four tiers under the new collective bargaining agreement would put the Dodgers' CBT estimation in the $270 million range.

After the Los Angeles D.A. did not see evidence of merit, why would MLB issue such a long suspension?

Criminal and civil standards are different from those of a private business. The judge dissolving the temporary restraining order and declining to issue a permanent one does not mean that Bauer is not responsible. A prosecutor does not pass on pressing charges.

MLB's imposed discipline is not related to the criminal proceedings. The league investigated Bauer's case for 10 months, but has not yet released any information. The Washington Post reported that they looked into at least one other allegation, from an Ohio woman who sought a temporary restraining order against Bauer in June of 2020.

How is this different from other suspensions MLB has given since it instituted its domestic violence policy?

The MLB and the MLB Players Association agreed in August of 2015 to a joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. The suspensions ranged from 15 to 161 games, not including Felipe Vazquez, who was charged with sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl. Sam Dyson was suspended for the entire 2021 season by the MLB, it was twice the previous high.

Do players win?

Occasionally. Alex Rodriguez was suspended for a record 211 games by the MLB after he was found to have used and possessed performance enhancing drugs. He was allowed to play for the rest of the season.

The suspension of Rodriguez was reduced to the full season. Ryan Braun's positive drug test was nullified because of a chain-of-Custody issue. The same lab that provided Rodriguez withPEDs provided Braun with 65 games for his involvement with Biogenesis.

According to sources familiar with the grievance process, anything is possible if the suspension for domestic violence is appealed.

Will Bauer ever pitch in the MLB again?

In recent weeks, agents and executives were skeptical that a team would take a chance on Bauer even if he were eligible to pitch this season, given the public-relations storm that would follow. If the arbiter upholds the suspension, Bauer will be 33 years old by the time he is eligible to pitch again, and he will have gone almost three years without playing in the majors. The league would not have come down so hard if more details about MLB's findings had been made public. It is impossible to rule out a team taking a chance on him despite all that. It is very difficult to imagine right now.