The Giants have a significant upgrade on their outside defense, reportedly agreeing to a two-year, $20.5MM contract with the free agent outfielder. Harrison Bader. The Vayner Sports client could receive an additional $500K in incentives, bringing the maximum deal value to $21MM.
Bader, 31, had been a free agent for three consecutive seasons but now has received the multi-year deal that has eluded him. He signed one-year deals with the Mets and Twins, respectively, two winters ago. Bader did a great job in Minnesota and was a redshirt for the Phillies from the ground up after joining them at the trade deadline, and the market has rewarded that strong performance for 2025.
In 501 plate appearances between Minnesota and Philadelphia last year, Bader slashed .277/.347/.449 with 17 homers, 24 doubles, triples and 11 steals (albeit in 18 attempts). His 7.8% walk rate was the second-best he’s posted in a 162-game season, though his 2025 strikeout rate of 27.1% was also his worst mark in a full season since 2019. Much of Bader’s success can be attributed to increased playing time and a .359 batting average when he talks about it, but his .359 average speaks for itself. barrel average and a 40.3% hard-hit average were personal bests in a major league season.
As strong as last year’s performance was — 22% better than league average, with a wRC+ rating — offense has never been Bader’s calling card. He’s been clearly above average in four of his nine MLB campaigns, but overall, Bader is a .247/.313/.401 hitter in over 3000 career plate appearances, which turns out not to be all that embarrassing. His glove work, however, is among the best in all of baseball, regardless of position.
Bader played 5925 innings of defensive center field in his career and was credited with a gaudy 51 Defensive Runs Saved and 67 Outs Above Average. He played more left field than center field in Minnesota, mostly in honors Byron Buxtonand scores well in both DRS (7) and OAA (3) up to 496 frames.
In total, Bader has played 6799 innings of outfield defense in the majors, dating back to his 2017 MLB debut. At that time, only four players – Mookie Betts, Kevin Kiermaier, Daulton Varsho, Michael A. Taylor – earned his 67th DRS. No outfielder during that time has surpassed Bader’s 77 OAA. Francisco Lindor, Nick Ahmed, Nolan Arenado again It’s Bryan Hayes only the big four leagues at any position had a better OAA total during that time.
With Bader turning 32 in June, it’s fair to at least wonder if he’ll start to slow down over the next two seasons. However, there is no reason to think that will be the case – at least based on recent history. This past season’s average running speed of 28.8 feet per second was actually an improvement over Bader’s 2024 mark of 28.2 ft/sec and right in line with his 2023 mark. He’s no longer putting up the flat-out elite 30 ft/sec he did earlier in his career, but Bader’s 2025 fielding velocity is still in the 85th percentile of all major league position players. He is a clear runner.
It’s a near certainty that Bader will take that speed and range to Oracle Park as the Giants’ new center fielder. Jung Hoo Lee handled the bulk of the center field work in San Francisco this past season but ranked as one of the worst defenders in the game by the way (-18 DRS, -5 OAA). Lee’s arm strength sits in the 91st percentile of major league outfielders, according to Statcast, but his range was near the bottom of the scale. Lee should have the arm to move to right field, where his lack of range will be better suited. Even if Bader’s bat regresses and looks a bit average, the defensive improvement alone will be huge for the Giants.
Factoring in the distribution of that $20.5MM, Bader’s contract bumps San Francisco’s actual salary to a projected $195MM, per RosterResource. Their luxury tax bill is much higher, coming in at around $221.5MM, but that still leaves more than $20MM between their current standing and the $244MM threshold where luxury penalties kick in. San Francisco has paid taxes in the past, but rarely. They were over the line in 2024, their only time exceeding the limit in recent memory.
At the moment, it doesn’t seem likely that the Giants will climb back to that level of spending. San Francisco is in the market for a second baseman but has been eyeing the trade market – specifically, for affordable targets like CJ Abrams again Brendan Donovan (“affordable” in terms of income — not necessarily income). Add them Adrian Houser again Tyler Mahle trades and could continue to navigate the swing and bull market, but ownership has publicly expressed its reluctance to sign any free agent to a long-term deal, prompting a run away from top free agents such as Framber Valdez you feel impossible.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the two-year deal. Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the financial terms.
