The Los Angeles Dodgers may be a star-studded team with championship pedigree, but they have proven that they are willing to take chances on prospects. 

The latest instance of this came on Monday, when the team announced it had claimed infielder Christian Cairo off waivers from the New York Mets. 

Cairo, 25, was designated for assignment by the Mets a week earlier on Nov. 2. 

Cairo had been with New York for less than two months after the organization claimed him off waivers from the Philadelphia Phillies after the latter designated him for assignment on Sept. 13. In recent years, Cairo has not had a lot of organizational stability in his minor-league career. 

In June 2019, he was signed by the Cleveland Guardians, and he remained with the organization until December 2024, when the Atlanta Braves purchased his contract in the Rule 5 draft.

Three months later, on March 20, Cairo was returned to Cleveland, where he remained until December 2025, when he signed with Philadelphia after electing free agency.

Over the course of his minor-league career, Cairo has worked his way through the ranks and has been at the Triple-A level since 2024. As a member of Triple-A Columbus, the affiliate of the Guardians, in 2025, Cairo appeared in 112 games and posted a .237 batting average. 

He also notched a .338 on-base percentage, a .331 slugging percentage and a .669 OPS with two home runs and 28 RBIs in 354 at-bats.

After signing with the Phillies, Cairo appeared in 128 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley. His numbers experienced a gentle decline as he posted a .227 batting average, a .378 on-base percentage, a .298 slugging percentage and a .676 OPS with four home runs and 35 RBIs. 

While Cairo is not the best hitter, he has proven that he can play various positions. During the 2026 season, Cairo made appearances at second base, third base, shortstop, left field and center field. 

Most of his time was spent at shortstop, where he made 59 appearances (58 starts), but it is also the position where he made the most mistakes, as he totaled nine errors and a .961 fielding percentage over 502.2 innings.

Overall, it is pretty clear that the Dodgers are simply taking a flyer on Cairo. The organization already has multiple promising infield prospects making up its top 30, and given how much Cairo has bounced around recently, he must make the most of this opportunity in order to find some stability.