What's the Latest on Dominic Fletcher in Reno?

Surely, you remember Dominic Fletcher who arrived in Late April to replace Alek Thomas and started crushing the ball. The last remaining player truly acquired for Paul Goldschmidt, with Carson Kelly gone, was on fire for the first couple of weeks until slowing down on the road and then suddenly being optioned on May 24th. Fletcher continued to hit the ball well with the Reno Aces in Triple-A and got called back up to the Arizona Diamondbacks on June 30th. This time, he didn't do great and only lasted until July 7th. That's the last anyone's seen of Dominic Fletcher in the MLB, so how is one of the D-backs top prospects doing down in Reno since? Why was he sent down?

Let's answer the second question first. On the surface, Fletcher was excelling in the MLB. Over 28 games, 102 plate appearances, he hit .301/.350/.441/.791 with a strong 117 OPS+. He had five doubles, a triple, two home runs, 14 RBI, 10 runs, and seven walks to 22 strikeouts. Those are really good base numbers. So, on the surface, it didn't make sense to send him down. Well, like many rookies, Fletcher had some concerning splits.

The twelfth-ranked prospect of the Arizona Diamondbacks was crushing the ball against right-handed pitchers but struggled mightily against left-handed pitching. This makes sense for a young left-handed batter. The same was true of Corbin Carroll in his cup of coffee last year. Against right-handed pitching, over 26 games and 72 plate appearances, Fletcher hit .369/.423/.523/.946 with 11 RBI, two home runs, four doubles, six walks, and nine strikeouts. Clearly, he sees the ball very well when he has the platoon advantage. Yet, to stick in the MLB long-term, you have to be at least average at both or at least to reach your true potential.

Against left-handed pitching, Fletcher hit a meager .143/.172/.250/.422 with a double, triple, three RBI, and one walk to 13 strikeouts over 15 games and 30 plate appearances. That's not the kind of batting line any MLB team wants to see their player have versus a third of the pitchers in the MLB. This year, the D-backs have faced a left-handed starting pitcher 34% of the time. That's a big chunk of games that a player would be unavailable to start in. If Fletcher wants to stay up in the big leagues the next time he comes up, he has to improve upon those numbers.

On the other hand, he's had a bit of a Zac Gallen at-home/Ryne Nelson at-home kind of season in the MLB. What do I mean? That Dominic Fletcher has been dominant at Chase Field and has struggled everywhere else, which isn't sustainable. At Chase Field, Fletcher has hit .417/.447/.694/1.142 with 15 hits, two doubles, a triple, two home runs, 11 RBI, two walks, and five strikeouts over 40 plate appearances and 13 games. A very small sample size but impressive.

Meanwhile, on the road, Fletcher hit just .228/.290/.281/.571 with five walks, 17 strikeouts, three RBI, and three doubles over 62 plate appearances and 15 games. That's another hurdle that Fletcher must overcome the next time he is in the big leagues. If he can overcome both left-handed pitching and hitting away from Chase Field, he will never go back to Reno. That might be true if he can just hit .250 or so against both of those factors.

What's Dominic Fletcher Doing in Triple-A Reno?

Well, since Fletcher went back down, all he's done is hit and play great defense. He just won Pacific Coast League Player of the Week Honors after an amazing week at the plate. He played six games and batted .522 with 13 runs, seven doubles, and nine of his 12 base hits went for extra bases. He added in two home runs and is in the midst of a seven-game hitting streak. Over that time, he's hit .482 with 14 runs, 13 hits, 9 RBI, eight walks, five strikeouts, and an OPS of 1.546.

You might be wondering why he wasn't called up, but Kyle Lewis was. This is due to his left-handed struggles and the fact he hits left-handed. The D-backs are set to face quite a few left-handed pitchers this week which meant Fletcher wouldn't be on the field much. However, it's clear that he is striving to get back to Chase Field as quickly as he can.

Fletcher has been impressive with his keen eye at the plate and discerning approach to all fields. Since returning to the Minor Leagues on July 14th, he's hit .275/.387/.559/.946 with six home runs, 19 RBI, 17 walks to only 26 strikeouts, 11 doubles, and three stolen bases.

While he is still struggling versus left-handed pitching, it isn't as severe as it was in the MLB. Plus, he's proving to be an elite defender with a strong enough arm for right field. It's only a matter of time before he's back in a Sedona red jersey and taking the field for the Diamondbacks. Expect him to be one of the players to watch being called up when rosters expand on September 1st. If Kyle Lewis struggles, the team very well might call up Dominic Fletcher before then. He's proven he can hit the majority of pitching in the MLB and has the glove for it. For now, he'll continue to lead the Reno Aces to more wins and continue to develop his already strong contact-oriented hit tool. His mix of contact and command of the strike zone is something the D-backs are sorely lacking right now and could use badly.