A player getting hurt is one thing. Getting hurt by riding a scooter into a fire truck at 2 a.m. after a night of drinking is something else, and the San Francisco Giants made clear they see the difference.
Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey announced Friday, August 1, that the team is suspending payment of Harrison Bader’s salary while investigating the circumstances of a scooter crash that further damaged the 32-year-old outfielder’s already-injured left foot.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday, July 27, in San Francisco.
Talkin’ Baseball reported the details on X on August 1, citing Robert Murray. Posey issued a statement: “Over the weekend, Harrison Bader was involved in an accident that has delayed Harrison’s prior treatment timeline for plantar fasciitis and, unfortunately, his return to the field.”
He added: “We are still investigating the circumstances of the accident, but will be suspending payment to Harrison until he is able to resume performing services for the club.”
The sequence of events that led here is striking. Bader had been on the injured list since May 29 with plantar fasciitis in his left foot. He was scheduled to fly to Indianapolis to see a foot and ankle specialist the day after the crash.
That meeting was complicated when his scooter struck the back of a San Francisco Fire Department fire engine just before 2 a.m. The vehicle then ran over his foot. Bader was reportedly seen drinking at several bars before the incident.
Bader returned to San Francisco on Monday and underwent an MRI exam Tuesday, though the Giants have not released imaging results. Manager Tony Vitello said Thursday that a return in 2026 would have been “a long shot to begin with.”
The salary suspension is a rare move in MLB. Bader is in the first season of a two-year, $20.5 million contract. He is making $10.5 million this year, though more than half came as a $6 million signing bonus. Roughly $1.42 million of his $4.5 million salary remains owed through season’s end.
Neither Bader’s camp nor the MLB Players Association had responded as of Friday. The MLBPA may look to contest or grieve the suspension.
Harrison Bader and his History Makes This Pattern Harder to Ignore
This is not the first scooter-related incident for Bader. In 2014, during his sophomore season at the University of Florida, he was involved in a scooter accident believed to be alcohol-related.
He struck a curb and ran into a Ford pickup truck. The Gators suspended him for 19 games.
In his 30 games for the Giants this season, Bader hit .170 with five home runs and 14 RBI. The Giants signed him in January to improve their outfield defense, moving Jung Hoo Lee to right field. That move has worked.
His season was already over before the scooter crash made it official.
He had been a productive deadline addition for the 2022 Yankees and 2025 Phillies, both playoff teams, worth 1.3 WAR in just 50 games for Philadelphia last season. The Giants are now 47-62, fourth in the NL West, and without their center fielder for the rest of 2026.
The Giants have not indicated when or whether they will reinstate his pay.
