New York Yankees’ Harrison Bader celebrates with teammates following a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, Sunday, May 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)
Harrison Bader’s glove is going to get him an opportunity to be the Mets’ starting center fielder in 2024.
The 29-year-old has been one of Major League Baseball’s best defensive center fielders since 2018, with his outs above average (range) ranking in an average of the 95th percentile amongst all players at his position (h/t Baseball Savant).
What has withheld him from becoming a star in the majors is his bat. He’s a career .243 hitter with a .708 OPS while striking out in 27% of his at-bats.
According to Bader, offensive struggles have aligned with ceaseless injury issues. He was limited to just 98 games last year with the Yankees and Reds thanks to hamstring, oblique, groin, and rib issues.
“This feeling I had simply walking around my apartment, getting into cabs, walking down subway steps, that feeling is something I never want to have again,” Bader said during his introductory Zoom press conference last month. “Clearly, something was off.”
Conditioning has become a priority for Bader down in spring training and a clean bill of health will provide a blank slate, at least at the dish.
But where is the best place to put Bader in the lineup?
President of baseball operations David Stearns said that Bader is going to see a lot of center field in 2024, which will push Brandon Nimmo to left field — even if manager Carlos Mendoza was non-committal about it earlier this week.
Matchups will play a big part in deciphering Bader’s playing time with the Mets, and he should be automatically penciled in whenever there is a lefty on the mound. In his career, Bader owns a .262/.331/.494 slash line (.824 OPS) with 21 home runs and 63 RBI in 523 plate appearances — not even a full season’s worth.
Compare that to marks of .237/.304/.364 (.667 OPS) with 38 home runs…
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