SAN DIEGO — The ramifications of Harrison Bader’s late-night scooter crash just went from between the lines to his bank account.
The Giants will not issue any more paychecks for the time being to the free agent outfielder they signed to a two-year, $20.5 million contract this past winter.
President of baseball operations Buster Posey announced the drastic move in a statement Friday, almost a week after Bader crashed his scooter in the early hours of this past Sunday morning.
The crash, Posey said, “delayed Harrison’s prior treatment timeline for plantar fasciitis and, unfortunately, his return to the field.” While the club continues to investigate the circumstances of the accident, the Giants “will be suspending payment to Harrison until he is able to resume performing services for the Club.”
The Giants’ legal department had been looking into Bader’s crash, according to the San Francisco Standard, and there exists language in MLB’s collective bargaining agreement that could back up the organization’s move to penalize him financially.
Section 5(b) of the CBA prohibits players without written consent from their team from engaging in activities “involving a substantial risk of personal injury,” which could apply to the operation of a motorized scooter, though that is not expressly outlined in the provision.
It could be a tricky point for the Giants to argue, given the prevalence of scooter-riders to pass through their clubhouse. The electric two wheelers have been a popular mode of transportation among players, and one team member granted anonymity to speak candidly sympathized with Bader, telling the Post that “90% of us have been on a scooter at 1 a.m.”
This is a unique situation as only Bader managed to injure himself while aboard the scooter. Although manager Tony Vitello said it would have been a “long shot” for Bader to return from the plantar fasciitis that had kept him out since May, the crash ended any doubt that he was done for the season after appearing in only 30 games.
Bader was supposed to undergo imaging on Tuesday for the organization to learn the extent of the injuries suffered in the crash, but they had yet to make those results available Friday.
Bader was already not traveling with the team because of his long-term injury status, and he did not accompany the club on its current road trip that began Thursday.
Those within the organization are searching for more details, just like the public.
According to one anonymous source cited by The Athletic, Bader had “not fully cooperated” as the team tries to get to the bottom of what happened. Manager Tony Vitello initially said that Bader “didn’t share a lot of details with me.” Additionally, team sources told the Post that Bader had not reached out to his teammates, nor vice versa.
Bader was making $7 million this season and is owed another $10.5 million in 2027.
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