The Guardians can finalize their offseason with one move – sign Harrison Bader.
At the beginning of the offseason, it was unclear what the demand would be for Harrison Bader. As we are now in the middle
of January, it is clear there is no sweetheart offer out for him, or he would have signed. This is the perfect time for the Guardians to step in and find themselves a reliable option in centerfield.
Last year, Bader put up 3.2 fWAR and a 122 wRC+. Sign me up for that, obviously. However, he is 31 years old and only has a career 96 wRC+ and is projected for a 91 wRC+. While he has been very good in centerfield his whole career he was “only” at 6 Defensive Runs Saved and 3 Outs Above Average there last season. Barring a catastrophic injury, he projects to be a good centerfielder for 2026. For his career, Bader has a 106 wRC+ against LHP, which isn’t insane, but is reliable above average production there. If his defensive value remains steady, he should be a 2-3 win player.
Now, maybe the Guardians are real believers in Petey Halpin or Kahlil Watson in centerfield. Maybe they really like Angel Martinez’s chances of figuring things out there. Maybe they believe in every positive underlying metric for Nolan Jones, despite the clear evidence of their eyes. But, teams that want to win should not be relying on Chase DeLauter to play centerfield full time or players like Jones, Halpin, Watson and Martinez to figure it out. Jones and Martinez did not show the ability to be either above average hitters or fielders last year, and Halpin and Watson have too much chase and whiff to be relied on in the roles, as of this point in their young careers.
The Guardians should make an offer to Bader that will move him to accept a one-year deal to play here, perhaps with a mutual option for 2027. They have a payroll set to be under $80 million, so they have room to make a significant offer that should sway Bader to sign. Bader provides reliable production in centerfield so the Guardians can give DeLauter and George Valera a chance to be the 2026 right fielder with a depth option in either if one of them gets hurt. And, when they need a roster spot when they sign Bader, they can make their choice between Gabriel Arias, Nolan Jones, Daniel Schneemann, and Johnathan Rodriguez to make a small trade with or try to sneak through waivers.
I have discovered that Guardians’ fans generally dislike Bader, having seen him torture our team in the playoffs. Bader has had zero problems in team clubhouses and seems to be generally very liked by teammates. He plays with an edge and an attitude which can be very annoying when he’s playing against your team, but, trust me, you’ll learn to love that if he’s on your side. Especially if he is turning more fly balls and line drives hit to centerfield into outs than the current collection of options on the Guardians.
Do I wish the Guardians would aim for a right-handed hitter who profiles more as a middle-of-the-order hitter than Bader does? Absolutely. But, I don’t think the Guardians are adding at first base or second base. I think they genuinely like their group, there. I think there is still at least a small chance that they realize that their current options for centerfield should give them little confidence, given DeLauter’s injury challenges.
I expect the Guardians are done adding to their hitting group after the Stuart Fairchild move. But, if it were me, I’d find a way to get Bader in the fold.
