Dominic Fletcher was just trying to make a play, and it ended up costing him nearly a month of the season. Now the 26-year-old outfielder is on the road to recovery, but when he returns the final few months of the season will be crucial for his future with the team.
Fletcher suffered a left shoulder strain in early June and has been on the IL ever since. On Friday the White Sox announced that Fletcher would be sent to the Arizona Complex League to begin a rehab assignment.
When the White Sox dealt pitching prospect Cristain Mena to the Diamondbacks for Fletcher in February it was not a small investment. Mena was considered a top-10 prospect in the White Sox farm system at the time. However, it seemed like a good investment. Fletcher was viewed as a potential long-term solution in right field and someone assistant general Josh Barfield was very familiar with during his eight seasons in Arizona’s front office.
Unfortunately, the 2024 season has not been kind to Fletcher. He struggled early in the season slashing .203/.277/.271 with 20 strikeouts in his first 59 at-bats before being sent down to Triple-A Charlotte. When he was recalled in May he seemingly fell out of favor with manager Pedro Grifol. He had a long stretch without getting an at-bat and manager Pedro Grifol said that he would have to “wait for an opportunity and take advantage of it” after saying that Gavin Sheets, Tommy Pham, and Andrew Benintendi were going to be his three outfielders in the lineup.
On June 2nd, Fletcher tried to do just that. With the White Sox trailing by one run in the bottom of the seventh inning, he went racing into deep right-center field to track down what looked like a home run off the bat of William Contreras. Fletcher went airborne and crashed into the wall to make a home run-saving catch. It was a valiant effort. But one that cost him critical games to try and prove he should be an everyday player in the lineup.
He is hitting just .173 with six RBIs and a .480 OPS on the year. What’s been most concerning is his trouble hitting fastballs. He is hitting just .146 when opposing pitchers throw him a fastball and .214 on offspeed pitches. The 28-game sample size is small. But it marks a drastic step back from his rookie campaign when he posted a .301 batting average, with 14 RBIs, a pair of homers, and a 115 OPS+ in his first 102 at-bats.
The offensive struggles haven’t just been limited to the MLB level this season either. He slashed .238/.319/.405 with the Charlotte Knights before the White Sox decided to call him back up.
The trade deadline should help free up some playing time for Fletcher if Tommy Pham is moved. It should allow him to get consistent at-bats and try and prove to the White Sox they made the right decision to trade for him.
