Dodgers hurler Bauer won’t pitch again this season; MLB extends leave

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer will miss the rest of the season.

Major League Baseball and the players’ association extended his paid administrative leave Friday through the end of the World Series.

Bauer was placed on seven days’ paid leave July 2 under the union and MLB’s joint domestic violence and sexual assault policy after a Southern California woman said he choked her into unconsciousness, punched her repeatedly and had anal sex with her without her consent during two sexual encounters earlier this year. MLB and the union have since agreed to several extensions.

The decision to extend the leave through the rest of the season had been expected, given that Bauer had not pitched since June 29 and was running out of time to get back in shape to return to the mound while games remained. The regular season is scheduled to end Oct. 3 and the minimum ramp-up time for pitchers is generally regarded as three weeks.

“That’s more on the legal side, so I think for us just focusing on the baseball side, it really hasn’t affected the guys in the clubhouse,” manager Dave Roberts said.

The Dodgers are in the thick of the NL playoff race, trailing the first-place San Francisco Giants in their bid to win a ninth straight division title. Bauer’s absence has compounded the problems of a pitching staff beset by injuries.

He had a record of 8-2 and a 2.59 ERA in 17 appearances in his first season with the Dodgers. He’ll be paid his $28 million salary.

Asked if Bauer will ever pitch for the Dodgers again, Roberts said, “I have no idea. I just really haven’t given any thought to that.”