Twins notes: Harrison Bader 'looking forward' to playing left

FORT MYERS, Fla.

Minnesota Twins outfielder Harrison Bader wanted to play in a winning environment badly enough to sacrifice playing time at his favorite position.

For the first time in a decade, Bader, who is primarily a center fielder and won a Gold Glove in 2021, will see a significant amount of playing time in left field.

Baders last 651 defensive appearances have come in center field, a streak dating to July 20, 2018.

Advertisement But with Byron Buxton already entrenched, the Twins are asking Bader to regularly play left field, something he last did in 2015 at the University of Florida.

Bader said before Mondays first full-squad workout that playing for a competitive team has him willing to accept the challenge of playing in left field, where hes logged 58 2/3 major-league innings.

Im pretty sure Ive asked (Buxton) for multiple autographs in the past just because I admire his game so much, Bader said.

The reason why I think I have such good reads in center is because coming up, I did play a lot of the corners when I was younger and also in college.

Im just excited.

I want to help this team win and if thats going to come in left field however often as it does, then so be it.

Im here to play and Im here to win.

Whereas he signed with the New York Mets in early January 2024, Baders second stint in free agency required more patience.

This time, Bader signed a one-year deal worth $6.25 million with a mutual option for 2026 with the Twins on Feb.

7.

"I wanted to be on a competitive team, it was a deal I was extremely excited about." Harrison Bader on signing with the @Twins pic.twitter.com/UaMAZ5LMSp MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 11, 2025 Part of the delay was waiting for the right fit.

Some of it likely stemmed from a dip in performance as Bader produced a .496 OPS over his final 157 plate appearances with the Mets after carrying a .746 OPS into mid-July.

Though he started 108 regular-season games, Bader only started twice in 12 postseason appearances for New York.

Noting he could have finished stronger, Bader attributed his struggles to needing improvement with the mental side of baseball, confidence and consistency.

While free agency was slow going, Bader is pleased with the result.

The teams hes played for have reached the postseason in five of the past six seasons and Bader hoped to land with another club capable of making the playoffs.

Advertisement I ended up in a really good spot, Bader said.

Its just a really good opportunity to go out there and play competitive baseball and that was always my focus.

Now, Baders emphasis is on re-acclimating to left field, something he previously did in 2015 when the Gators named Michael Buddy Reed their starting center fielder.

Though Bader spent considerable time in left with the Gators in 2013, all of his 43 games in 2014 were played in center.

But with Reed in the lineup, Bader played just twice in center in 2015 and made 66 appearances in left field.

On Monday, Twins manager Rocco Baldelli praised Baders attitude about the adjustment.

The Twins undoubtedly expect to see Bader play some center field this season when Buxton needs time off or in the case of an injury.

But if Buxton is in the lineup, the expectation is hell patrol center and Bader is OK with the plan.

Hes taken that challenge, Baldelli said.

Bader doesnt remember much about how he perceived the switch in 2015.

He simply remembers his handling of the moment, working behind the scenes to excel in the corner and not committing an error all season.

After making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament each of the previous two seasons, the Gators reached the College World Series in 2015.

Not only was he flawless in the field, Bader hit 17 homers in 305 plate appearances and finished with a .959 OPS.

Reed, who played as high as Triple A, batted .305 with 47 RBIs for a team that also featured Pete Alonso and lost to Virginia in the semifinals.

Bader wants to bring the same mentality to the 2025 Twins.

Being on the field is the most important thing, Bader said.

The really good players are those who take the game situation and still find a way to be successful.

I was very proud.

...

I dont really have any emotion about it.

Im here to play.

Im here to win and Im going to do the work to be the best version of myself out there.

Im looking forward to the challenge.

Advertisement Ankle sprain to cost prospect Rodriguez time Emmanuel Rodriguez will miss the start of big-league camp after sustaining a left ankle sprain on Feb.

10, the Twins said.

Though an MRI determined no significant damage, the Twins second-best prospect is expected to be one to two weeks behind the rest of his teammates.

Rodriguez suffered the injury during defensive drills at the Twins year-round facility.

The injury is the latest setback for Rodriguez, who was ranked the No.

21 prospect in baseball by The Athletic s Keith Law.

A thumb injury that required an offseason cleanup surgery limited Rodriguez to 47 games across four minor-league levels in 2024.

Rodriguez also missed four months during the 2022 season with a left knee sprain.

Lewis clears up stance on slumps, injuries Royce Lewis corrected the record Monday, not that he needed to.

Last June, he said, I dont do that slump thing, which everyone took out of context to believe Lewis meant he would never endure a hitting slump.

Similar to many of his teammates, Lewis proceeded to suffer through a massive slump down the stretch as the Twins missed the playoffs.

What Lewis meant and quickly clarified was that he doesnt allow himself to think as if hes in a slump, even if he is, instead choosing to mentally wipe the slate clean every day.

Unfortunately for the Twins young slugger, the context wasnt considered and social media made a meal of the comments by Lewis, who had a .529 OPS over his final 182 plate appearances.

Asked about his health Monday, Lewis said he wouldnt talk about injuries for similar reasons.

I think thats a bad juju, man, Lewis said.

I remember I said something about a slump.

I was actually saying that you go through slumps, I just dont go through that thing mentally.

Well, were not going to talk about any of that because the baseball gods hear you, and things go the wrong way.

Were just going to talk about were going to work hard.

(Photo: Jonah Hinebaugh / Naples Daily News / USA Today Network via Imagn Images).

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