Buster Posey isn’t closing the book on Harrison Bader just yet.
That doesn’t mean Bader’s return to the Giants is likely. But when Posey was asked about the outfielder’s future during an interview with Bay Area sports reporter Tim Kawakami, the Giants’ president of baseball operations made it clear the situation isn’t fully settled.
“As you alluded to, there’s some of this that’s still back and forth with our legal [department] and the Players’ Association. But yeah, I mean, he’s under contract. [I] still think that Harrison can be a valuable player for the Giants.”
That answer leaves some room for interpretation. On one level, Posey could genuinely believe Bader still has a place in the club’s plans. On another, the ongoing legal wrangling may limit how blunt he can be about a player who hit just .170/.198/.358 with five home runs and 14 RBIs in 30 games in 2026.
Even with Posey’s comments, it remains difficult to picture Bader in orange and black next season. The Giants have seen several young outfielders make a case for bigger roles, including Drew Gilbert, Jonah Cox and Turner Hill. Down in Triple-A, Parks Harber and Bo Davidson are also pushing for attention.
That’s the direction most fans want to see the team go. Bader struggled badly on and off the field this year, and the younger options offer more upside and a clearer path forward.
The contract situation makes everything messier. If the Giants can’t void the deal, moving Bader won’t be easy. A trade would likely require San Francisco to absorb a significant portion of his salary, and releasing him would still leave the team responsible for the money he’s owed.
So the Giants are stuck navigating a complicated problem. In an ideal world, Bader isn’t on the roster next year. He’d only stand in the way of the younger outfielders who are already knocking on the door, and San Francisco would be better off turning center field over to a platoon of Gilbert and Cox rather than running out a 33-year-old Bader who probably wouldn’t get a warm reception from the fan base.
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