Phillies trade deadline addition Harrison Bader linked to Guardians in free agency

The Philadelphia Phillies are on the brink of elimination from the MLB playoffs, as they have to win three games in a row if they want to top the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

During the regular season, Philly made a solid trade deadline move by acquiring outfielder Harrison Bader from the Minnesota Twins. However, Bader is on just a one-year deal and is set to hit the open market this winter. 

Phillies' Harrison Bader named 'dark horse' option for Guardians

Harrison Bader has been a solid pickup for the Phillies. He hit .305 with five home runs in 50 games with Philadelphia down the final two-month stretch of the regular season. His season average is .277, and he's added 17 home runs and a bWAR of 4.2, which is a career high. 

It would not be a surprise if Bader ended up re-signing with the Phillies, but the Cleveland Guardians have also been linked to the 31-year-old outfielder. 

In a recent Bleacher Report piece, Bader is named as a 'dark horse' option for the Cleveland Guardians. His Spotrac value is listed at two years, $20 million. 

"The fit is readily apparent, as Steven Kwan was the only Guardians outfielder who amounted to anything in 2025. But the idea of this franchise winning a bidding war for a player fresh off the best season of his career is almost incomprehensible. Settling on a "maybe he'll bounce back" flyer for someone like Cedric Mullins is much more Cleveland's speed."

The Guardians aren't necessarily big spenders, but with such a bad outfield that has little to no offensive production, it wouldn't be a bad idea to commit to Harrison Bader for a couple of years.

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