Giants steal free agent outfielder who would have been great fit with Guardians

All offseason free agent outfielder Harrison Bader has been dangling like a carrot in front of Guardians’ fans' faces. 

On Monday, Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey pulled the carrot away, as San Francisco has reportedly signed Bader to a two-year deal, marking another disappointing free agency development for Guardians fans. The move was first reported by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. 

The Guardians missed out on signing Harrison Bader

Bader was one of the best free agency fits for the Guardians thanks to a skillset based around defense, speed and pop. 

Last year Bader posted a .277/.347/.449 slashline across 501 plate appearances for the Twins and Phillies while also recording 24 doubles and 11 steals. 

It wasn’t all good (he had a huge 27.1% strikeout rate), but that doesn’t take away from the fact that the 2025 season was his best since entering the big leagues. 

In the end, that showing was good enough for the multi-year the Giants gave him, which is new territory for him after he had to settle for one-year deals the past two offseasons. 

Bader’s also a wizard in the field, as he’s been worth 67 Outs Above Average in the field since he entered the league, has experience in all three outfield positions and won a Gold Glove with the Cardinals in 2021. 

At 31, Bader likely wouldn’t have been a part of the Guardians’ long-term core, but it’s pretty clear how he could have helped them now considering Guardians center fielders combined a wRC+ of 69 last year, which was one of the worst marks in the league. 

Even though that picture will be better next season thanks to the hopeful emergence of young stars like Chase DeLauter and George Valera, adding an established veteran like Bader would have made that outfield picture look a bit more well-rounded. 

Instead, the Guardians’ front office’s lone offensive addition is stillStuart Fairchild, who signed a minor league deal. 

Now he’s going to join a Giants outfield that was previously headlined by Jung Hoo Lee and Heliot Ramos, while top prospect Drew Gilbert is waiting in the wings. 

It’s also another strong acquisition for Posey, who traded for Rafael Devers last June and has added a variety of impact players this offseason including former Guardians reliever Sam Hentges. 

While there’s still a chance the Guardians could add Austin Hays to their outfield picture, Bader defecting to San Francisco is yet another indication that it seems like the Guardians aren’t going to add anyone else to their outfield picture this offseason.