Fowler signed a minor-league contract with the Marlins on Friday.
Fowler was let go by the Pirates on Saturday after he recently returned from the injured list, but he'll land a new contract less than a week later. The 26-year-old has slashed .270/.426/.622 with three homers, eight runs, six RBI and two stolen bases across 13 Triple-A games this year, and he's been assigned to Triple-A Jacksonville.
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Dustin Fowler: Released by Pirates
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Fowler was released by the Pirates on Saturday, Jake Crouse of MLB.com reports.
Fowler spent nearly two months on the minor-league injured list due to an unspecified injury, but he was activated Thursday. However, the 26-year-old will now seek out other opportunities after he hit .270 with three homers, eight runs, six RBI and two stolen bases in 13 games at Triple-A Indianapolis in 2021.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Reinstated from injured list
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Fowler (undisclosed) was reinstated from the 7-day minor-league injured list Thursday, Mike Persak of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports
Fowler landed on the injured list with an unspecified injury June 8, but he's appeared in five rehab games since late July. During his stint with the Pirates' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate, he went 3-for-15 with a home run, a triple, two runs and two RBI. He'll now return to game action at Triple-A Indianapolis for the first time since May 25.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Starts up rehab assignment
Rotowire
Fowler (undisclosed) began a rehab assignment with the Pirates' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate Monday, going 0-for-2 with two strikeouts in his first game with the club.
Fowler has been sidelined at Triple-A Indianapolis for just over two months with an unspecified injury. He'll likely play at least a few more games in the lower levels of the minors before rejoining the Pirates' top affiliate.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Moves to injured list
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Fowler (undisclosed) was placed on the 7-day injured list by Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Fowler hasn't seen the field for Indianapolis since May 25, and the reason for his absence remains unclear.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Clears waivers
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Fowler has cleared waivers and was assigned to the Pirates' alternate training site Wednesday, Jake Crouse of MLB.com reports.
Fowler was DFA'd by Pittsburgh on Thursday, and he'll remain with the club going forward. The 26-year-old appeared in each of the first 18 games of the season and was in the starting lineup on 12 of those occasions. During that time, he slashed .171/.239/.195 with two RBI and 20 strikeouts in 41 at-bats.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Designated for assignment
Rotowire
Fowler was designated for assignment by the Pirates on Thursday.
Fowler started 12 of the Pirates' first 18 games in center field but did very little with his opportunities, hitting .171/.239/.195 while striking out 43.5 percent of the time. With Anthony Alford also getting designated for assignment this week, the Pirates might slide Bryan Reynolds over to center field or turn to Ka'ai Tom, who was claimed off waivers from Oakland on Wednesday.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Sits against southpaw
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Fowler will hit the bench for Saturday's game against the Brewers.
Brewers starter Brett Anderson will be just the third southpaw the Pirates have faced all season. Fowler has sat against all three of them. Anthony Alford gets the nod in center field in his absence.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Sits against lefty
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Fowler is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Padres, Jake Crouse of MLB.com reports.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton will play matchups with lefty Blake Snell on the bump for San Diego, so the lefty-hitting Fowler takes a seat in place of the switch-hitting Wilmer Difo. Fowler appears to have captured a large-side platoon role in center field, but with just four hits in 22 at-bats to begin the season, he presumably has little job security.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Collects double Sunday
Rotowire
Fowler went 1-for-3 with an RBI double in Sunday's 7-1 victory over the Cubs.
He also made a fine running grab in center field. Sunday's effort was particularly important because Fowler has struggled for the most part in in 2021. The double was his first extra-base hit and lifted his slash line to .222/.286/.278 in 21 plate appearances. Fellow center fielder Anthony Alford is still looking for his first hit after 15 at-bats, but there has been discussion of moving Bryan Reynolds from left field to center in an effort to keep Phillip Evans in the lineup after Ke'Bryan Hayes (wrist) returns.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Sitting out Saturday
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Fowler isn't starting Saturday's game against the Cubs.
Even with right-hander Zach Davies on the mound for the Cubs on Saturday, Fowler will take a seat after he went 3-for-14 with one RBI, one stolen base and six strikeouts to begin the season. Anthony Alford will start in center field Saturday, batting eighth.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: May have large-side platoon role
Rotowire
Fowler will start in center field and bat eighth Thursday against the Cubs.
Manager Derek Shelton has yet to formally name an everyday center fielder, but based on how the Pirates' lineups have shaken out the past few days, Fowler seems to have captured the larger side of a platoon with Anthony Alford. Fowler will be in the lineup Thursday for a third consecutive matchup with a right-hander (Jake Arrieta), while Alford's lone start in the last four games came versus Reds lefty Wade Miley. Fowler has gone 3-for-12 with five strikeouts to begin the season, so he likely doesn't have much job security.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Off to disappointing start
Rotowire
Fowler went 0-for-3 with a pair of strikeouts in a 4-3 loss to the Reds on Monday.
Fowler made his second start in center field Monday. He's hitless since collecting an Opening Day pinch-hit single -- 1-for-8 in all -- and has done little to warrant additional playing time. Fellow center fielder Anthony Alford's struggles are one of the few reasons why Fowler might see more opportunities in the short term.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Gets start Saturday
Rotowire
Fowler will bat eighth and start in center field Saturday against the Cubs.
The left-handed hitter will face righty Jake Arrieta. Fowler collected a pinch-hit single Opening Day, only to fail to later tag up from third base on a would-be sacrifice fly. Fowler could see a bump in potential fantasy value if his starts against right-handed pitching become a trend. The team's other center-field option, Anthony Alford, went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts Thursday, though he did walk twice.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Claims roster spot
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Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Monday that Fowler will be included on the 26-man Opening Day roster, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
Pittsburgh elected to keep Anthony Alford and Fowler as its primary options in center field over non-roster invitee Brian Goodwin, who was reassigned to minor-league camp Monday. Alford is expected to handle everyday duties in center, likely relegating Fowler to a fourth-outfielder role to begin the season. Utility man Phillip Evans is also a candidate to fill in at either corner spot when starters Bryan Reynolds or Gregory Polanco require a day off.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Collects three RBI against O's
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Fowler went 1-for-2 with a bases-clearing double off the right-field wall Sunday against Baltimore.
He saw his first action in left field Sunday after serving as the team's designated hitter Saturday. General manager Ben Cherington recently said he foresaw Fowler as a backup corner outfielder following the team's recent waiver acquisition, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him take on a bigger role if injuries force starters like Gregory Polanco to the sideline.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Reserve role most likely
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Manager Derek Shelton expects Fowler to primarily serve as a back-up corner outfielder, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
"I would expect him to play both corners," Shelton said. "We may drift him into center a little bit. We need outfield depth, and to be able to acquire him was good for us." Given right fielder Gregory Polanco's penchant for injury, there is a chance that Fowler could see more playing time than is expected. In 2019, the 26-year-old hit .277 with 25 homers and 12 stolen bases at Triple-A before spending last summer as part of Oakland's alternative training site.
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Pirates' Dustin Fowler: Sent to Pittsburgh
Rotowire
Fowler was traded from the Athletics to the Pirates on Wednesday in exchange for cash considerations, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.
The 26-year-old was designated for assignment by Oakland earlier this week, and he'll head to Pittsburgh for a change of scenery. Fowler last appeared in the majors in 2018 with a .224/.256/.354 slash line in 203 plate appearances. He had an .810 OPS in 130 games at the Triple-A level in 2019 and should provide organizational outfield depth for the Pirates.
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Athletics' Dustin Fowler: Loses 40-man spot
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The Athletics designated Fowler for assignment Monday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
The transaction clears room on the Athletics' 40-man roster for reliever Trevor Rosenthal, who agreed to a one-year, $11 million contract with the club. Acquired from the Yankees in July 2017 as one of three prospects the Athletics received in exchange for Sonny Gray, Fowler was the first of the trio to reach the big leagues, but he hadn't made an appearance for Oakland since 2018. Fowler likely wasn't near the top of the list for an early call-up this season after slashing a mediocre .277/.333/.477 in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League in 2019, so Oakland elected to cast the outfielder off the 40-man roster. He'll likely head back to Triple-A Las Vegas to open the upcoming campaign if he goes unclaimed off waivers.
