Ex-Indians star Trevor Bauer wins a Pitcher of the Year award

Former Cleveland pitcher Trevor Bauer has been named the Mexican Baseball League's Pitcher of the Year, the league announced Friday.

Bauer, in his debut season in the Mexican League, finished with a 10-0 record, 2.48 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and a league-high 120 strikeouts in 83.1 innings for the Diablos Rojos. He was honored with the Pitcher of the Year award after receiving 94 of 119 votes from the league's electing committee, well ahead of second place Zac Grotz (nine) and third place David Reyes (seven).

Earlier this season, Bauer set a Mexican League record with 19 strikeouts against the Oaxaca Guerreros on June 21. He also tied a league record with nine consecutive strikeouts against the Leon Bravos on April 21.

Bauer, 33, has been vocal about his desire to return to MLB since being released by the Los Angeles Dodgers in January 2023. The former Cy Young Award winner hasn't pitched in MLB since June 2021, when he was placed on administrative leave by the league after a California woman filed a sexual assault lawsuit against him . MLB suspended Bauer in April 2022 for a league-record 324 games – equivalent to two full seasons.

Bauer's suspension was later reduced to 194 games by an independent arbitrator in December 2022. However, he was released by the Dodgers one month later.

The lawsuit against Bauer, as well as a separate lawsuit he filed against his accuser in April 2022, ended in October 2023 when both parties agreed to a settlement that involved no exchange of money.

The 10-year MLB veteran played the 2023 season with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He finished the season with an 11-4 record, 2.59 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 160 strikeouts in 156.2 innings pitched.

The former All-Star pitched 10 seasons in MLB from 2012 to 2021, including six-plus seasons in Cleveland from 2013-19. He also pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks as a rookie, as well as the Cincinnati Reds - with which he won the 2020 National League Cy Young Award - and the Dodgers. For his MLB career, Bauer has an 83-69 record, 3.79 ERA, 1.243 WHIP and 1,416 strikeouts in 1,297.2 innings pitched in 222 games, including 212 starts.