Ex-Cardinals Fan Favorite Outfielder Available, Reunion Could Be Coming
The St. Louis Cardinals' expansive list of outfielders was one of the deepest groups in Major League Baseball to open the season but injuries and underperformance have quickly changed the team's perspective.
Jordan Walker has impressed offensively as a rookie but has work to do as he continues his transition to the outfield. Lars Nootbar is the best overall outfielder but currently is on the injured list after taking a foul pitch to the groin.
Dylan Carlson (also injured), Alec Burleson and Tyler O'Neill have all underperformed this season. If the Cardinals did want to bolster the group with a month to go, they could look toward a former friend.
"New York Yankees outfielder Harrison Bader has been placed on waivers," according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. "Bader has slumped severely as of late, but he would cost less than $1 million for the final month of the season and could be claimed by Thursday."
Bader is hitting .239 with 21 extra-base hits including seven home runs, 37 RBIs and a .640 OPS in 83 games this season while batting injuries along the way. He'd been a much more productive player with St. Louis.
The 29-year-old hit .246 with 135 extra-base hits including 52 home runs, 168 RBIs and a .729 OPS (99 OPS+) in 523 games over the course of his six-year Cardinals career.
Bader also won a Gold Glove in 2021 and is regarded as a high-end defensive player. While the veteran could provide a spark for the Cardinals with a month left to go, there's truly no reason for the organization to add impending free agents at this point unless they plan to re-sign him in the offseason.
Bader would be an improvement over some of the middling options the Cardinals currently have assuming he gets back to his old self but it's not likely that St. Louis would put in a claim for him.
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