The Mets are continuing to add to their outfield depth, signing veteran center fielder Harrison Bader on Wednesday to a one-year, $10.5 million deal, per Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Bader was a free agent this winter after splitting the 2023 season with the Yankees and Cincinnati Reds. He was a trade-deadline acquisition of the Yankees in 2022 from the St. Louis Cardinals — a team he spent the first five-plus years of his MLB career with.
The 29-year-old Bronxville, NY native is known for his defensive prowess in center field. Over the last three seasons, his outs above average (OAA) ranked in the 99th, 91st, and 95th percentiles, per Baseball Savant, which provides further depth for a Mets team that is approaching the 2024 season with some uncertainties.
While Brandon Nimmo is coming off a career offensive season in terms of power, the center fielder had some issues defensively after taking notable steps forward in 2022. Starling Marte is slated to be the Opening Day right fielder after his 2023 was derailed by lingering issues from offseason groin surgery and migraine issues.
In left field, the Mets have either DJ Stewart or Tyrone Taylor — acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in the Adrian Houser deal last month — as options. Still, neither inspire confidence in being an everyday option because they’ve never done that.
Bader has played 548 defensive games in center field where he won a Gold Glove in 2021 with the Cardinals compared to a combined 54 in the corners. His presence could allow the Mets to flex Nimmo to a corner-outfield spot occasionally or he could be thrown into the current left-field mix.
He’s a light-hitting option, which hampers his chances of getting everyday playing time. He batted .232 with a .622 OPS, seven home runs, and 40 RBI across 98 games last year. It’s a sizable drop-off from his career averages of a .243 batting average, .706 OPS, though injuries have been prevalent throughout. Over the last three years, he’s missed 199 games.
The University of Florida product could go to slugger Pete Alonso for some hitting pointers, though. The two were close college teammates at the SEC school, which included a run to the 2015 College World Series.
