2025 Phillies Thread

Tom McAndrew

BWI Staff
Staff member
Oct 27, 2021
71,044
53,060
113


That's disappointing, but it was also expected. Once I learned that it was a mutual option for next year (i.e., both sides could exercise it or decline it), it was pretty obvious that Bader was going to opt out. He did quite well for the Fightins after they acquired him at the trade deadline. He out performed offensively versus his career averages. So while that made him someone the Fightins would have loved to retain, it also makes him quite a valuable FA. And at the age of 31, this may be his last chance to cash in for a lot of money.

As recently as the 2020 season, he was in the pre-Arbritation MLB status, so he only made $590K. In terms of making big dollars, that didn't happen for him until the 2022 season, when as a FA he signed for 2 years at $10.4M per year. He got $10.5M as a FA in 2024, but "only" got $6.25M as a FA in 2025.
 

Tom McAndrew

BWI Staff
Staff member
Oct 27, 2021
71,044
53,060
113
MLB.com ranked the FAs (top 30). You can read the article at the below link.

They have:

3. Kyle Schwarber, OF/DH
10. Ranger Suarez, LHP
22. J.T. Realmuto, C

They also have Harrison Bader as an honorable mention.

 

LionJim

Heisman
Oct 12, 2021
13,385
18,607
113
Sup with Dombrowski having to talk nice to Harper, make peace? Old Man Yelling at Clouds moment for me, I guess.