The St. Louis Cardinals bought out the final two years of arbitration with Gold Glove winning outfielder Harrison Bader by agreeing to a two-year, $10.4 million dollar contract, per Ken Rosenthal. The Cardinals currently feature one of baseball’s best defenses with players such as Bader, Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, and Tyler O’Neil on the diamond. But Bader is the glue piece in the middle, and his mixture of defensive wizardry and blazing speed automatically makes him one of the most exciting center fielders in the MLB. 

Bader’s progression has been impressive over the past few seasons. He was initially viewed as a fourth outfielder/ pinch-runner type of talent. Although players in those roles are valuable, Bader was destined for bigger things in his big league career. 

The 27-year old has dealt with injuries which have limited his overall production over the course of his five-years in the show. But when he is on the field, Bader has developed into an everyday outfielder who specializes on defense but can help out at the plate as well. 

In just over 100 games last year, Bader posted a .267/.324/.460 line with 16 home runs and 21 doubles. Bader also had a .990 fielding percentage a season ago as well. He was amongst the league’s best in defensive runs saved and was ultimately rewarded with a Gold Glove. 

The Cardinals are looking to win the National League Central after finishing second last year. They were able to make the Wild Card game but lost to the Dodgers in 2021.

St. Louis has a solid balance of defense, hitting, and pitching that should propel them into a competitive race with the Brewers for the top of the division. 

Harrison Bader will play an instrumental role in guiding the Cardinals to the 2022 postseason. This new contract is indicative of how much St. Louis values the center fielder. At the end of season, most people will talk about the hitting statistics that players such as Arenado and Goldschmidt put up. But having a guy in the middle of the outfield who can take away hits via mind-boggling plays is something the Cardinals are refusing to overlook. 

Bader and the Cardinals are primed for a big 2022 campaign.