Report: Indians experiencing 'definite uptick' in Bauer interest

The Cleveland Indians may not be actively shopping starting pitcher Trevor Bauer, but that apparently isn't stopping suitors from attempting to acquire his services.

Cleveland reportedly experienced "a definite uptick in the interest level" for Bauer from rival teams on Monday, sources told Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

However, the Indians are increasingly unlikely to part with the right-hander, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, who added that ownership is reluctant to trade away an ace while in playoff position.

Leading up to the deadline, the Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres have both been both tied to Bauer, though no specific club was mentioned by Rosenthal.

While the emergence of Shane Bieber has given Cleveland another top-of-the-rotation stud, the team has also dealt with a myriad of injuries to starters Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and Mike Clevinger throughout the season. As a result, the Indians currently sit in the first wild-card spot, two games back of the division-leading Minnesota Twins and three games up on the second wild-card berth.

After looking like a Cy Young front-runner at times last year, Bauer has regressed due to a massive increase in home runs allowed during 2019. For the season, the 28-year-old owns a 3.79 ERA and a 4.17 FIP over 24 starts, with a 27.9 percent strikeout rate and a 9.5 percent walk rate. However, he's allowed 1.26 homers per nine innings after posting a 0.46 mark in 2018.

Bauer's in his second-last year of arbitration eligibility and can test free agency following the 2020 campaign. The polarizing pitcher has been outspoken in recent months about his desire to sign only one-year contracts for the remainder of his career.