Best fit for free agent Harrison Bader after posting a career-best .796 OPS in 2025? @jonmorosi mentions the Giants, Royals and White Sox as strong potential fits.
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The Mets have been named a potential landing spot for Phillies free agent outfielder Harrison Bader.
After signing high-leverage reliever Seranthony Dominguez, the Chicago White Sox may not be done adding.
According to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi, the White Sox are a “strong fit” for free agent outfielder Harrison Bader.
Best fit for free agent Harrison Bader after posting a career-best .796 OPS in 2025? @jonmorosi mentions the Giants, Royals and White Sox as strong potential fits.
Other possible landing spots for Bader include the San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Royals, all of whom need outfield help.
Bader, 31, had a career year in 2025. Morosi added that Bader’s asking price will need to come down for Chicago and Kansas City to become serious suitors.
After the trade of outfielder Luis Robert Jr., White Sox general manager Chris Getz promised to reallocate the $20 million contract they traded. While Getz has made good on his promise so far, the White Sox need more pieces.
Entering his age-32 season, Bader is a known commodity to MLB teams. While he doesn’t provide much power or bat-to-ball skills, he is a great defender and a speedster.
Bader has hit just 88 home runs in his nine major league seasons, with a .247 lifetime average. However, he has a gold glove from 2021 and 105 stolen bases.
In 2025, between the Minnesota Twins and the Philadelphia Phillies, Bader hit a career-high 17 home runs and drove in 54 runs. With a career-high .796 OPS and .277 average as well, Bader should make some good money on the free agent market.
Despite having a career-year batting-wise, his advanced numbers tell a different story. All of his batting numbers were below-average in 2025, except for bat speed and barrel rate, per Baseball Savant.
His expected batting average was especially concerning, with a .220 xBA, good for just the ninth percentile.
However, his defensive numbers were elite. He had a +7 Outs Above Average (92nd percentile) and an 85th percentile sprint speed.
Although he had a solid 2025, his offensive numbers have been below-average for much of his career.
After trading Robert Jr. to the New York Mets, Bader would be a logical replacement.
Robert Jr. brought a strong defensive presence in center field, something that Bader can do as well.
The outfield for the White Sox is quite barren after the Robert Jr. trade. While Andrew Benintendi should play left field for now, he is a potential trade candidate.
After Benintendi, the White Sox’s 40-man roster is full of inexperienced players. These include Brooks Baldwin, Derek Hill, Luisangel Acuna, Everson Pereira and Tristan Peters.
While Baldwin has the most experience out of this group, his offensive output has been mediocre at best.
If Benintendi is traded, an outfield of Baldwin, Acuna and Bader could make sense. Top prospect Braden Montgomery should make his debut at some point this year.
With great numbers in the minor leagues in 2025, Montgomery is poised to take an outfield spot in 2026.
Bader, on a potential one-year deal, could be a placeholder of sorts until Montgomery is ready and would fill a glaring hole on a White Sox team with great potential for the future.
Matthew Singer Matthew Singer is a sports reporter covering MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2025, and has two years of experience covering local professional, collegiate and high school sports, including writing for Cronkite News and Arizona PBS. More about Matthew Singer
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