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Bauer: 'There's no way there won't be baseball this year'

Norm Hall / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Trevor Bauer is certain Major League Baseball will return this season.

On the same day the MLBPA "resoundingly rejected" additional salary cuts, the Cincinnati Reds pitcher said he believes the league and its players will figure out the financial issues holding up baseball's return.

"I'm very confident that a season will be back, like 95-to-100% that we play baseball this year," he said Thursday on "The Pat McAfee Show."

"I think that we have a long history of obviously negotiating with each other, as the MLBPA and MLB," Bauer continued, adding that there have been about 26 years of labor peace, and he imagines "it'll be the same thing this time."

"We'll get a deal worked out, no doubt in my mind about that," he continued. "There's no way there won't be baseball this year, in my opinion."

After the players rejected more pay cuts on Thursday, MLB's discussions with team owners reportedly turned to a shortened 48-game season, with players receiving full prorated salaries.

Players initially proposed a 114-game schedule, which the owners rejected, but they remained interested in an 82-game season with full prorated salaries.

Bauer said he understands why the financial back-and-forth is happening, with players trying to get what they deserve while risking their health. However, he also says players want to take the field as soon as possible.

"I haven't spoken to a single player yet that does not want to play baseball this season," the pitcher said. "Everyone is like, 'I want to play. I want to get out there and play, this is what we're supposed to be doing."

"There's also the understanding that this is good for the country. We want to be out there entertaining people. At the end of the day, we’re entertainers. Yeah, we play a game, we want to win a World Series, but we're entertainers. We entertain millions of people on a nightly basis," Bauer added.

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