The Minnesota Twins officially announced on Friday that they have signed outfielder Harrison Bader for the upcoming 2025 season.
The deal is for a guaranteed $4 million and features a $750,000 signing bonus. The contract also includes a mutual $10 million option for 2026, with a buyout of up to $1.5 million — depending on the number of plate appearances Bader collects this year, according to Jon Heyman of The New York Post.
For the Twins, this is only their second Major League signing of the 2024-2025 offseason.
Bader is entering his age-31 season, and the Twins are the fifth stop on his MLB journey that started with the St. Louis Cardinals back in 2017.
Bader spent nearly six seasons in St. Louis before stints with the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds in 2022 and 2023. Bader spent his 2024 campaign with the New York Mets, who signed him for over $10 million back in January of that year.
A career .242 hitter, Bader slashed .236/.284/.373 in 143 games for the Mets last season. Not known much for his power, Bader slugged 12 home runs last year — his most in a season since he hit 16 back in 2021. Bader’s 57 runs scored and 51 RBIs in 2024 were both career highs.
Bader’s OPS+ of 86 for the 2024 campaign is considered below league-average, but it is Bader’s highest mark dating back to 2022.
Praised for his defense, Bader is a natural centerfielder, as he has logged every defensive inning there since 2018.
Bader posted a 2.45 RF/9 last year, slightly off his career-average of 2.62. Bader, a Gold Glove winner in 2021, will join a Twins defense that already has a strong centerfielder in Byron Buxton; nonetheless, Buxton has dealt with plenty of injuries in his career, and the Twins have made it clear they want a defensively-savvy fourth outfielder after losing both Max Kepler and Manuel Margot to free agency this offseason.
It’s worth noting that Minnesota does not have a surefire designated hitter, so it’s possible Buxton could DH some, allowing Bader more playing time in centerfield.
The Twins will kick off the 2025 regular season against Bader’s former team, the Cardinals, in St. Louis on March 27th.
