Pirates Release Dominic Fletcher

Outfielder Dominic Fletcher triggered a release clause in his minor league deal with the Pirates and has been granted his release, per Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He is now a free agent and can sign with any club.

It’s the second time this year that Fletcher and the Bucs have gone down this road. He began this year with the club on a minor league deal. He was released in July but re-signed via a new deal shortly thereafter. Now he has been released again.

The cycle likely stems from the fact that Fletcher is having a good season but the Pirates don’t have a spot for him. In 237 Triple-A plate appearances this year, he has an 11% walk rate and 14.3% strikeout rate, both strong numbers. He has eight home runs, a .301/.386/.485 line and a 130 wRC+, indicating he has been 30% better than league average at the plate. He also has three stolen bases and has lined up at all three outfield slots.

But the Pirates, even with Ryan O’Hearn on the injured list, have an outfield group consisting of Oneil Cruz, Esmerlyn Valdéz, Bryan Reynolds and Jake Mangum. They also have Billy Cook on the bench and Jhostynxon García, Tyler Callihan and Ronny Simón on optional assignment.

Fletcher can head to the open market to see if there’s a better path to playing time somewhere else. The last time he tried, he ended up circling back to the Pirates. Perhaps he could find more interest now that the trade deadline has passed. That makes it harder for clubs to address roster needs, so maybe he’ll get some calls from clubs looking for outfield depth. If he gets a roster spot somewhere, he still has an option year remaining. He has a .233/.280/.325 line and 67 wRC+ in 377 big league plate appearances.