Addison Barger was added to the Jayhawks’ 40-man roster in November 2022 to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. He is 26 years old and has played 204 games in two seasons with the Blue Jays, hitting .229/.286/.422 with 28 homers.
In 2025, he split time between third and right field, playing 91 games in third field and 57 games in right field. This year? Well, that’s the thing, isn’t it?
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With the signing of Kazuma Okamoto, Addison’s available minutes at the position may be reduced. If the Jayhawks sign Kyle Tucker, there probably won’t be a lot of playing time in right field. Even if they don’t sign Tucker, the team has George Springer and Anthony Santander who will (probably) share the outfield spot and DH. Unless the team signs Beau Bichette, he could end up playing alongside Ernie Clement at second base.
Such is the life of a young baseball player. You can become a top prospect (who ranks No. 3 on our top 40 prospects list ahead of the 2024 season) and hit 28 home runs in your first 204 games. You can be a playoff hero, hitting .367/.441/.583 with three home runs in 17 postseason games, but teams can still try to upgrade at your position.
Bugger has yet to pitch a second game in the majors and has played in just 52 games in the minors. I’m not sure he has the speed you want at that position. It would be a waste of his best defensive weapon – his arm. However, Barger has been much better against RHP (.249/.308/.480) than LHP (.217/.270/.337) over his career, so he and Clement are a good pairing. I’d like to see him get more playing time against lefties to see if he can perform at a reasonable level. I doubt that will happen this year.
Steamer thinks Barger will play 99 games, post a .249/.319/.451 line with 17 homers and a 1.7 fWAR. Of course, Swolmer (like the rest of us) doesn’t know if the Jayhawks will sign Tucker.
I wonder who is going to be the better player over the next four years, Barger or Okamoto… maybe that would be a good poll.
