Report: Indians' Trevor Bauer to Be Fined, Not Suspended for Launching Ball

Cleveland Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer will reportedly avoid a suspension for his long-distance throwing demonstration during Sunday's 9-6 loss to the Kansas City Royals.

Per MLB Network's Jon Heyman, Bauer will be fined by Major League Baseball for the incident.

When Terry Francona came out to remove Bauer from the game after he allowed seven earned runs in 4.1 innings, the right-hander expressed his frustration by throwing the ball from the pitcher's mound over the fence in center field at Kauffman Stadium. 

Speaking to reporters following Cleveland's loss, Bauer issued an apology for the incident: 

"First and foremost, I owe a sincere apology to all of my teammates, my coaching staff, the organization and all of our fans for how I conducted myself today. It's unbecoming. It was childish, unprofessional. There's no place for it in the game. I'm happy it didn't result in any physical injury for anybody else. I realize I put people in danger.

"I want to be clear that my frustrations were with myself and my inability to stop the situation and keep my team in the game. It was not directed at any of my teammates, even though I know that it came off that way. I love going to battle with my guys every day, and today I feel like I really let them down, both personally and professionally.

"I'm an intense competitor and that fire is what drives me, and today it completely consumed me, took over. I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I behaved. I'll be better about it. It won't happen again."

Francona spoke to Bauer as the right-hander was walking off the mound, but the Tribe skipper declined to comment on what he said. 

Bauer's name has come up in trade rumors leading up to Wednesday's deadline, but Heyman reported Cleveland is "increasingly unlikely" to deal him because the team currently leads the wild-card race and is just two games behind the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central.

Cleveland's starting rotation depth has been impacted with Corey Kluber out since May due to a broken arm and Carlos Carrasco's leukemia diagnosis. Bauer has been the one constant this season with an MLB-high 156.2 innings pitched and a 3.79 ERA in 24 starts.