After using Michael A. Taylor and Manuel Margot as the primary backup outfielder over the last two seasons, the Twins plan to follow a similar formula with Harrison Bader in 2025.
Bader agreed to a one-year contract with the Twins on Wednesday, which is pending a physical exam, a source familiar with the deal told the Minnesota Star Tribune. The deal includes a mutual option for the 2026 season.
The Twins have a full 40-man roster and will have to make two corresponding roster moves once the signings for Bader and lefty reliever Danny Coulombe become official.
Bader, 30, is known for his solid defense in center field. A Gold Glove winner in 2021, Bader played 143 games for the New York Mets last year while hitting .236 with 12 homers, 51 RBI and a .284 on-base percentage. Bader, who made $10.5 million last year, added 17 stolen bases in 25 attempts.
He was mostly a bench player during the Mets’ postseason run last year, compiling nine at-bats and starting two games as the Mets advanced to the National League Championship Series.
The Twins sought a righthanded-hitting outfielder to spell Byron Buxton in center field — Buxton played 102 games last year, his highest total since 2017 — and it gives them another option to platoon with corner outfielders Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner. Larnach was rarely used against lefty pitchers last season, recording 23 plate appearances against them, and Wallner had only 44 plate appearances in lefty-on-lefty matchups.
Taylor excelled in center field for the Twins in 2023, albeit in a season when Buxton was exclusively a designated hitter. Margot, who was hitless in 30 at-bats as a pinch hitter, struggled defensively and was limited to a corner outfield role.
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