Harrison Bader has been making highlights all over centerfield for the Cardinals in 2018. According to Fangraphs, Bader leads all outfielders with 22 DRS on the season. His elite speed helps him track down the baseball better than any at the position. He currently ranks as the 5th fastest player in all of baseball.
https://twitter.com/mlb/status/1031001025220567040?s=21
His defensive ability is off the charts, and should he reach the necessary innings, a Gold Glove could be in his future. Rawlings shows that for a player to be eligible they must play 698 innings through the team’s 138th game. The Cardinals have played 128 games, and Bader needs only 74.1 innings to qualify.
But this isn’t about the Gold Glove. Oh no.
This is about Rookie of the Year.
2018 has been filled with fantastic rookies across the National League, and Harrison Bader could be the best of them all.
Probably the two most talked about players in the NL ROY conversation are Ronald Acuña Jr of the Atlanta Braves and Juan Soto of the Washington Nationals. Both players have had remarkable years and should certainly be in the running, but I find it odd at how much Bader is overlooked at the same time.
Offense (Baseball Reference)
Acuña Jr – 290 AB | 83 H | 54 R | 20 HR | 44 RBI | 10 SB | 27 BB | 87 SO | .286 BA | .354 OBP | .566 SLG | .920 OPS | 145 OPS+ | 3.0 WAR | 2.6 oWAR |
Soto – 285 AB | 83 H | 58 R | 15 HR | 45 RBI | 2 SB | 59 BB | 68 SO | .291 BA | .413 OBP | .519 SLG | .932 OPS | 144 OPS+ | 2.0 WAR | 2.5 oWAR |
Bader – 269 AB | 75 H | 47 R | 9 HR | 25 RBI | 12 SB | 24 BB | 85 SO | .279 BA | .350 OBP | .439 SLG | .789 OPS | 113 OPS+ | 3.8 WAR | 1.4 oWAR
Just from first glance, the numbers from both Soto and Acuña Jr. are strikingly similar. They both have the same number of hits and nearly the same number of RBI’s and OPS+ on the year. The biggest difference between them and Bader is the power output. Bader isn’t very far behind them from the offensive side of things. Interesting to note is that Bader leads the 3 in WAR despite having the worst offense. The reason why Bader should be more of a competitor for NL ROY boils down to overall game.
Defense (Fangraphs/Baseball Reference)
Acuna Jr – | 4 DRS | 0.1 dWAR | 122 CH | 117 PO | 2 A | 3 E | .975 FLD PCT |
Soto – | -4 DRS | -0.8 dWAR | 152 CH | 148 PO | 2 A | 2 E | .987 FLD PCT |
Bader – | 22 DRS | 2.2 dWAR | 181 CH | 174 PO | 6 A | 1 E | .994 FLD PCT |
Talk about a difference. Acuña Jr. and Soto are not on the level of Bader when it comes in defense. Acuña is serviceable while Soto has underperformed in the outfield. Bader, on the other hand, is an elite talent in the outfield as mentioned previously. Acuña Jr and Soto are better offensively, but it isn’t like Bader is bad at the plate. And while Bader fields his position at a high level, the others simply play “okay” and still are considered better bets to win the NL ROY. And that doesn’t make much sense to me. Bader simply has better tools all around which should give him the edge.
Bader has been one of the most fun players to watch this season. His defense alone should get him a chance at a gold glove, but watching him stretch a single into a double and his ability to fly down the base paths is just another reason he should garner more national attention.
Bader should win NL ROY. But unfortunately, he doesn’t hit enough bombs to be in the consideration. I know it isn’t the only factor, but it’s clear that votes will be made more so because of offensive ability over defensive ability no matter how good it may be.
Harrison Bader, you are a stud at centerfield. Keep it up.
Thanks for Reading!
Aaron M.
Follow me on Twitter @AaronArchCity
