Stuart Fairchild elected free agency after being designated for assignment by the Guardians last week, reports Tim Stebbins of MLB.com. The outfielder went unclaimed on outright waivers and has the three years of MLB service that gives him the right to explore the market.
Fairchild was pushed off the roster when the Guards brought up top prospect Cooper Ingle. He’s nominally a catcher but is a bat-first prospect whom the Guardians — a team that emphasizes catcher defense more than any other — don’t really seem to trust behind the plate. Ingle is up to platoon with righty-hitting David Fry in left field and take some at-bats at designated hitter.
The 30-year-old Fairchild spent a month on the roster as a short-side platoon outfielder. He appeared in 14 games. Fairchild walked seven times but struck out in 14 at-bats while collecting three hits. The Wake Forest product has played parts of six MLB seasons and has a lifetime .221/.309/.377 slash line with a 28% strikeout percentage in just under 700 plate appearances.
Fairchild was hitting .289/.417/.479 across 40 games at Triple-A Columbus before being called up. He has been an excellent Triple-A performer throughout his career. Fairchild is a good athlete and strong defensive outfielder, so he’s a solid upper minors depth piece, but he hasn’t hit much in scattered MLB looks. He’s out of minor league options, limiting the roster flexibility for teams.
