The White Sox brought outfielder Dustin Harris back on a minor league deal, the team announced. He’s headed to Triple-A Charlotte. Harris was with the South Siders earlier this season but went to the Astros on waivers last month. Houston designated him for assignment last week, and Harris opted for free agency over an outright assignment upon clearing waivers.
The 26-year-old Harris has taken 102 plate appearances in the majors across parts of three seasons and turned in a .225/.307/.371 slash. He logged a career-high 52 plate appearances with the ‘Stros this year and hit .233/.333/.302 before being cut loose.
Harris was once a notable prospect in the Rangers system but hasn’t found success in the big leagues yet. He’s always had a bat-first profile with strong contact skills but power that plays closer to average. In parts of four Triple-A seasons, he’s a .276/.366/.417 hitter with a big 11.2% walk rate and a 20.4% strikeout rate that’s lower than the major league average. Harris fanned only seven times in his 52 plate appearances with Houston (13.5%).
Harris was drafted as a corner infielder but has been almost exclusively an outfielder in recent seasons. He’s played 21 innings at first base over the past three seasons and none at third base (majors and minors combined). He’s never played the infield in the big leagues but does have experience in all three outfield spots.
Bringing Harris back gives the ChiSox a left-handed bat to stash in Triple-A, but they apparently don’t feel there’s an immediate opening for him in the majors. The Sox are going with top prospect Sam Antonacci in left field, Tristan Peters in center field and former top prospect Jarred Kelenic more often that not at the moment. Veteran Andrew Benintendi remains in the left field/DH mix, and the Sox also have veterans Randal Grichuk and Derek Hill on the bench. Infielder/outfielder Luisangel Acuña can play all over but has seen his playing time dwindle as his struggles at the plate mount. Austin Hays and Everson Pereira give the Sox two more outfielders to consider in the big league mix, but both are on the 10-day IL with relatively short-term injuries at the moment.
