SF Giants rumors: SF reportedly linked to Phillies OF coming off career-best season

The SF Giants have reportedly been linked to outfielder Harrison Bader who is coming off a career-best season with the Philadelphia Phillies. He would make sense in multiple ways for the Giants so this rumor does not come as a huge surprise.

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that Bader is someone who "piques the Giants' interest." The Giants clearly have a need in the outfield with there not being a clear option in right field and with Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee providing sub-par defense in left field and center field respectively last season.

SF Giants linked to outfielder Harrison Bader in free agency

The Giants have made a habit of acquiring solid defensive outfielders this offseason with their additions of Justin Dean and Joey Wiemer. Bader would fall firmly into that category as well. He won a Gold Glove for his defense in center field and has been a very solid defensive outfielder for a long time.

Not only that, but he is coming off a career-best season at the plate in 2025. Spending time with the Minnesota Twins and the Philadelphia Phillies, Bader slashed .277/.347/.449 with 17 home runs and 54 runs batted in.

Those are all over his career averages on offense so it is very questionable whether he could repeat that in 2026 especially if he signed with the Giants.

Still, the Giants would mainly be signing him for what he brings to the table on defense. The Giants could either just stick him in right field and be getting a very above-average right fielder, or they could put him in center field and move Lee over to right field.

Giants insider Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area has said multiple times that he does not feel that the Giants are looking to move Lee off center this season, but sees it as something that could happen down the road.

However, going off Lee's 2025 numbers, the Giants may be better served to move him to right field. If he could be at least average defensively in right and if Bader is his usual self in center that would give the team a much more solid defensive outfield than they have had in quite some time.

Bader would not break the bank, either. ESPN projects that the 31-year-old will get a two-year, $25 million deal which should be well within San Francisco's price range.

The Giants need to fill a spot in the outfield and adding Bader would really help them out defensively which is something president of baseball operations Buster Posey has emphasized.