The Philadelphia Phillies may not have made a major splash at the trade deadline for an outfielder, but the team did upgrade at the position. The Phillies landed veteran outfielder Harrison Bader from the Minnesota Twins on Thursday for two minor league prospects.
Johan Rojas was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to make room for Bader and get consistent playing time with the IronPigs. Even with the addition of Bader, the Phillies continue to fail to commit to a consistent outfield dynamic.
Phillies still aren't doing the right thing in the outfield after the addition of Harrison Bader
Despite trading for the nine-year veteran, Bader wasn’t in the starting lineup for Friday night’s series opener against the Detroit Tigers. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski noted that the 31-year-old will “play a lot,” but he didn’t commit to him being an everyday player.
Bader entered Friday’s game as a pinch hitter for Max Kepler for his first appearance with the Phillies during the offense’s seventh-inning rally against the Tigers. He worked a four-pitch walk to load the bases with no outs and later scored the game-tying run from second base on Kyle Schwarber’s single to right field.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson opted to start Brandon Marsh in center field and Kepler in left field rather than giving his newest offensive addition an opportunity right away. Both Marsh and Kepler went 0-for-2 before being pinch-hit for in the seventh inning.
Prior to Friday’s win, The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber highlighted the Phillies’ plans for the new-look outfield through at least this six-game homestand. Lauber noted that the team intends to stick with platoons in center field, between Marsh and Bader, and in left field, between Kepler, Otto Kemp and Weston Wilson.
Right now, and possibly through at least the homestand, the #Phillies intend to platoon Marsh/Bader in CF and Kepler with Kemp/Wilson in LF. But Marsh and Bader can also play left — and quite well. So, you know, there’s that. https://t.co/PeMAg81qQL
— Scott Lauber (@ScottLauber) August 1, 2025
Although the Phillies are paying Kepler $10 million, the veteran hasn’t proven to be an everyday player. With a .202 batting average entering Saturday, Marsh and Bader are significantly better options offensively than Kepler.
Even with a perfect fielding percentage in left field in 2025, Marsh and Bader are the better options defensively over Kepler as well. Bader won a Gold Glove in 2021 with the St. Louis Cardinals and owns a .987 career fielding percentage between all three outfield positions.
If the Phillies are committed to winning a World Series in 2025, the starting outfield should consist of Nick Castellanos, Bader and one of either Marsh or Kemp.