After a slow start to the season and a difficult 2025 campaign, David Fry is getting back to being the Cleveland Guardians' secret weapon.
Two years ago, the Cleveland Guardians' offense had a secret weapon emerge in the middle of their lineup: David Fry.
The overlooked prospect grew into an All-Star in 2024 after logging a .854 OPS with eight home runs during the first half of the season. Unfortunately for Fry and the Guardians, the right-hander was forced to undergo Tommy John surgery in the offseason and missed the first month of the 2025 season.
Even though, in the grand scheme of games, it didn’t take Fry long to get back on the field, he really never looked the same for the rest of the year. Fry was used to playing just about every position on the field, but was limited to being solely a designated hitter, and was clearly putting a lot of pressure on himself in the batter’s box to make up for his limited role.
Now, with Fry back to being the super utility player, he’s also back to being an above-average hitter for the Guardians, and his bat has really been heating up as of late.
In the last two weeks, Fry owns a .308/.438/.1.00 slash line. All three of Fry’s home runs in the 2026 season have come during this stretch. His .892 OPS on the season is also now the second-highest on the Guardians, only trailing rookie sensation Chase Delauter.
May 2, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Cleveland Guardians right fielder David Fry (6) is congratulated by teammates after hitting a solo home run against the Athletics during the sixth inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn ImagesStephen Vogt made it clear that this uptick in production is entirely due to the work Fry is putting in behind the scenes.
Even though he hasn’t been in the lineup every day, Fry continues to prepare as if he is, and he's ready to help the team any way he can.
“David's been working extremely hard,” said Cleveland’s skipper on Tuesday.
“The scarce playing time, but he's always ready. And he's been swinging about really well as of late, and it's due to his hard work. He's working very diligently. It’s always fun to see David getters results.”
It’ll be interesting to see how Fry’s playing time is managed moving forward. He’s clearly been one of Cleveland’s hottest hitters over the last few weeks, and deserves everyday playing time, but where will that come? Will we see Fry in the outfield more, at first base, or behind the plate?
It’s a good problem to have, and the same one the Guardians faced in 2024 when Fry truly broke out as an All-Star.
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