2024 Mets Report Card: Harrison Bader, CF
Harrison Bader, CF
Player Data: Age: 30 (06/03/1995), B/T: R/R
Primary Stats: 437 PA, .236/.284/.373/.657, 95 H, 12 HR, 51 RBI
Advanced Stats: 85 wRC+, 21.7 K%, 4.8 BB%, .276 BABIP, .296 xwOBA, 1.3 fWAR
2024 Salary: $10.5 million
Grade: C+
2024 Review
The Mets signed glove-first outfielder Harrison Bader to a one-year, $10.5 million deal last offseason, aiming for a bounce-back season from the veteran. Bader’s offensive ability had been declining alarmingly, with his OPS dropping from a solid .745 in his 2018-2021 campaigns to a below-average .635 across 2022-2023. He was one of several short-term projects David Stearns introduced last offseason, hoping to revive veteran players like Bader.
Bader began the season at a decent pace, hitting .272 with a .682 OPS through the end of May. He was then especiallyproductive in June, driving in 15 runs and starting all but four games that month. His value to the first-half Mets was notable, as he gave New York a respectable .733 OPS before the All-Star break. On July 12, the Mets didn’t know how badly his production would tail off after smashing two moonshots at Coors Field.
Unfortunately, Bader couldn’t sustain much of his first-half success. His OPS in July plummeted to .665, a 151-point drop from his .816 mark in June. As his offensive production slowed, so did the playing time manager Carlos Mendoza gave him. Bader increasingly saw action for his defense rather than his bat. Tyrone Taylor, stronger offensively and comparable in the field, began to edge him out. The Taylor/Bader platoon worked well for New York, with Taylor posting OPS marks of .801, .793, and .790 in June, July, and September, respectively. In August and September, Mendoza started Bader off the bench in 19 of the 50 games he appeared in, over which he slashed a disappointing .165/.228/.296.
This decline carried over into the postseason. With his fall off, the Mets stuck with Taylor despite his rough .162/.296/.216 slash line in the playoffs, signaling their lack of trust in Bader. He continued to get reps late in games as a defensive replacement for an ailing Brandon Nimmo but logged just nine plate appearances, managing only one single.
Despite this, his contributions went beyond the offensive numbers. Anyone who watched Bader patrol center field would understand why New York kept a below-average hitter in the lineup nearly every day. His range in the outfield ranked in the 95th percentile, and he recorded 10 Outs Above Average (OAA) in center. This mark put him in elite company, tying him with Padres newcomer Jackson Merrill for ninth in baseball amongst centerfielders.
2025 Overview
Looking ahead, Bader will reach free agency after signing a short one-year pact with the Mets. With a weak free agent market for 2024-2025, Bader may be considered the best true center fielder available. He’s not exactly young, but he isn’told either. He could land a deal that guarantees him less money for slightly longer, or he might take a gamble on another one-year contract for a bit more. As a Gold-Glove caliber outfielder, he should match what he made last offseason, at the very least.
David Stearns could consider re-signing Bader, as the Mets would need to find a replacement if they don’t want Brandon Nimmo to play a position he’s weaker in. It remains unclear whether Stearns would be inclined to give another deal to a project that didn’t work out well for the Mets, especially compared to other signings like Luis Severino and Sean Manaea.
The post 2024 Mets Report Card: Harrison Bader, CF appeared first on Metsmerized Online.