Terry Francona hints that last-minute Reds roster cuts won't include Stuart Fairchild

Terry Francona didn't announce that Stuart Fairchild will be part of the 2025 Cincinnati Reds Opening Day roster, but he offered a pretty strong hint. The Reds skipper spoke about the ongoing roster battle between Fairchild, Blake Dunn, and Jacob Hurtubise, and his comments revealed an interesting, yet predictable nugget of information.

“Fairchild, we’ve got him here to hit lefties, and you can’t always match that up in spring training," Francona said on Saturday. The right-handed hitting Fairchild has struggled this spring with a .135/.238/.189 slash line in 37 at-bats. Dunn and Hurtubise have pooled together much more impressive statistics this spring, with both players hitting above .300 in Cactus League play.

But as Francona said, Fairchild has a very defined role. If (and likely when) Fairchild is named to the Reds Opening Day roster, fans should not expect to see the 29-year-old in the batters' box unless a southpaw is on the bump. Last season, Fairchild hit just .152/.213/.293 against right-handers and .273/.350/.436 against lefties. It's obvious why Fairchild is still in camp, and why he'll almost assuredly break camp with the big-league ball club.

Terry Francona hints that last-minute Reds roster cuts won't include Stuart Fairchild

That means it's a two-horse race between Dunn and Hurtubise. The former, no doubt, has the advantage due to that fact that he's a right-handed hitter. Based on Francona's comments, it's easy to foresee the Reds manager deploy an outfield of Dunn, Fairchild, and Austin Hays when a left-hander is on the mound. If the Reds are facing a right-hander, Francona will likely swap out Dunn and Fairchild for TJ Friedl and Jake Fraley.

For all the hullaballoo attached to Fairchild's struggles this spring, Fraley hasn't been any better. The veteran outfielder is hitting .154/.267/.231 through 16 Cactus League games. But much like Fairchild, Fraley is a platoon outfielder who'll only see the field when the pitching matchup favors his left-handed swing. Fraley's career-OPS is over 250 points higher when facing right-handed pitching.

When Spencer Steer and Tyler Stephenson return from the injured list, things could be a bit different. But until that happens, Reds fans should expect Fairchild to have a permanent spot on the roster, though not in the everyday lineup.

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