Bauer: 'I have nothing wrong with Gerrit'

Just after he won the first Cy Young Award by a Reds pitcher in that storied franchise's history, Trevor Bauer discussed his relationship with Yankees star right-hander Gerrit Cole on Wednesday. The two were teammates while at UCLA, where there reportedly was a rift between them.

The topic came up during the Baseball Writers' Association of America conference call with Bauer after it was announced he was the 2020 National League Cy Young Award winner. It's relevant because Bauer is a free agent, and any time a star pitcher is on the market, the Yankees are usually thought to be in the mix for potentially acquiring him.

"I have nothing wrong with Gerrit," Bauer said. "We had our differences in college and that was nine or 10 years ago at this point. I'm a different person now than I was then. I'm sure the same is true for him."

Bauer told Sports Illustrated last year that he and Cole feuded in college after Cole criticized Bauer in front of teammates for not following the UCLA baseball team's weight-lifting program.

The Yankees are coming off a second consecutive season in which injuries plagued the roster but they managed a postseason berth. New York lost to the eventual American League champion Rays in the AL Division Series. Cole was acquired the prior offseason to bolster the club's starting rotation ahead of what it hoped would be a World Series run in 2020.

The addition of Bauer likely would ensure the Yankees would be the team to beat in the AL in '21. Bauer said he and Cole don't really interact these days, but he'd definitely be open to joining the Yankees under the right circumstances.

"At the end of the day, I want to win," Bauer said. "I hate losing. It drives me nuts. And it's pretty evident from watching him pitch and seeing his performances in the postseason and how into it he is, that he feels the same way. And I think if you look at trying to win a World Series, which is one of my goals every single year, you want to put the most intense competitors together, you want to put the best talent together, and go and see what you can do. Certainly, if I was given the opportunity to do that and play alongside him again, I'd be more than open to it."

A one-two punch of Cole and Bauer would be devastating for opponents, and with the Yankees having won one World Series title in the last 20 years -- and that championship coming 11 years ago -- a Cole-Bauer tandem could very well put them over the top.

As far as Bauer is concerned, he doesn't see why not.

"I don't think there's anything between us," he said. "At least on my end -- I certainly can't speak for Gerrit."