The San Francisco Giants’ season has already gone horribly wrong. Harrison Bader somehow found a way to make it stranger.
Bader had been scheduled to visit a foot and ankle specialist Monday in Indianapolis about the plantar fasciitis that has kept him out since May 30. Before making the trip, however, the veteran outfielder further injured the same left foot in a late-night scooter accident in San Francisco.
The Giants said Bader still attended the appointment, but the new injuries changed the nature of his evaluation. He returned to San Francisco to see team orthopedist Dr. Ken Akizuki and was scheduled for an MRI to determine the extent of the damage.
“Obviously, he’s not better than he was prior to that,” manager Tony Vitello said. “It’s going to delay the recovery process for him, but even prior to it, you’re looking at a pretty frustrating long runway.”
The accident represents a fittingly bizarre addition to a season that has gone pear-shaped at nearly every turn.
Bader signed a two-year, $20.5 million contract in January but has been limited to 30 games by hamstring and foot problems. He is batting .170 with a .198 on-base percentage and .358 slugging percentage, falling well short of the two-way impact San Francisco expected in center field.
This is also not Bader’s first scooter-related mishap. He was suspended from team activities at the University of Florida following a late-night scooter crash in 2014.
Bader’s setback was only part of a brutal injury update.
Casey Schmitt suffered a torn meniscus while rounding first base Monday and could miss the remainder of what had become his breakout season. Pitcher Trevor McDonald will undergo Tommy John surgery and is likely to miss all of 2027.
Those losses arrive as the Giants sit 16 games below .500 and prepare to sell at the trade deadline. Robbie Ray, Tyler Mahle and Luis Arráez could all be moved, while the team faces the possibility of its first 90-loss season since 2017.
San Francisco has experienced disappointing performances, significant injuries and mounting trade uncertainty. Bader further damaging an already injured foot in a scooter crash feels like the perfect cherry on top.
