Giants sign OF Harrison Bader

Harrison Bader's two-year, $20.5M signing with the Giants earns a D+ Contract Value Index (CVI) — a below-market deal that reflects legitimate injury risk and limited recent production offsetting his defensive upside. Bader is a solid-to-above-average outfielder when healthy, with Gold Glove caliber defense, but the contract carries substantial downside given his injury history; the timing of his return to the Injured List just weeks into the 2026 season underscores the durability concerns that should have tempered the Giants' investment. At $10.25M AAV, the deal prices him as a fringe All-Star or solid starter, a tier he has not consistently inhabited over a full season — the Giants are essentially paying for ceiling rather than floor. The real issue is structural: San Francisco needed production *now*, sitting 28–41 and 14 seeds deep in a rebuilding phase, but Bader's health profile makes him an unreliable centerpiece for a win-now push, meaning the front office overpaid for optionality rather than proven availability. With 108 days left in the regular season, this signing reads as a mid-roster gamble that lacked margin for error — and early injury trouble has already validated those fears. CVI reflects the gap between what the Giants hoped to get (an impact defender in a contention window) and what the market should have priced (a high-risk depth piece on a struggling roster).