Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer in June 2021. Photo: Meg Oliphant/Getty Images
A woman who publicly accused Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer of sexual abuse in 2021 filed a counterclaim against him on Tuesday, alleging that he "violently sexually battered" her two times.
Why it matters: The new lawsuit is in response to a defamation case Bauer filed against the woman and her lawyer while he was appealing his two-season suspension under the MLB's domestic violence policy.
In the countersuit, the woman seeks damages over claims that Bauer allegedly sexually abused her on two occasions in the spring of 2021, choking her until she was unconscious, repeatedly punching her face and body and having nonconsensual anal sex with her while she was unconscious.
- While she acknowledges that she initially consented to being choked, "she did not consent to the excessive and dangerous choking that followed," the lawsuit reads.
- The lawsuit also accuses Bauer and his representatives of engaging in "an organized smear campaign to falsely and maliciously denigrate" her and other victims.
- Bauer has said they engaged in consensual "rough" sex on both occasions and established rules and boundaries beforehand and that she consented "multiple times" during the events.
- He said he never “assaulted her in any way."
- Representatives for Bauer said they did not have an immediate comment.
The big picture: The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office declined to charge Bauer over the allegation after it determined in February that there was not enough evidence to win a conviction.
- The woman sought a restraining order against Bauer, which was denied by a Los Angeles judge, saying it was "materially misleading."
- Bauer has been accused by two other women of committing sexual abuse, and he has denied each accusation, according to the Washington Post.