Oakland A’s: With playing time, Cristian Pache can show what he can do

The Oakland Athletics went on a fire sale before spring training started, making multiple trades involving some of the faces of their franchise. One of their biggest trades was sending All-Star first baseman Matt Olson to the defending World Champions, the Atlanta Braves. In return, the Braves gave Oakland outfielder Cristian Pache, catcher Shea Langeliers, and right-handers Ryan Cusick and Joey Estes.

The biggest name in the trade was Cristian Pache. Unfortunately, the highly-touted prospect from the Braves could not find his footing with the team in 2021. The rookie played 22 games with Atlanta and, in 68 plate appearances, had a slash line of .111/.152/.206, with a .358 OPS, 25 strikeouts, two walks, seven hits, 4 RBI, and one home run. However, Pache did suffer an injury and was sent back down to Triple-A in the early campaign. He later had a slight stint again with the Braves after outfielder Guillermo Herreida was injured.

While evaluating what needed to be done to make a postseason run, the team did not have time to see if Pache could figure it out on the field, so Pache was never called back up after June 2. Meanwhile, at the trade deadline, Atlanta rebuilt its outfield, meaning Pache was the odd man out.

Flash forward to this season.

While it is early, Cristian Pache of the Oakland A’s needs some more MLB at-bats to completely find his footing.

In Oakland, the outfielder is an everyday player and has had the opportunity to show his skills with the A’s. He is currently slashing .208/.208/.354 with a .562 OPS in 48 at-bats, which is not great but better. His strikeout percentage is still high at 22.9%, and he has yet to draw a walk this season.

The 23-year-old Pache has a lot of potential in the A’s organization. Oakland needs a little “Moneyball” to get Pache on base more. The critical stat is getting on base and scoring runs for the team. Pache embraced the trade and is very active in social media, showing his ability to be a team player.

Olson was a massive loss for Oakland, but even with him and Matt Chapman, the A’s didn’t make the playoffs last season. Billy Beane (VP of baseball operations) and David Forst (GM) are curently making a team that, on paper, has plenty of room for potential growth.

The Oakland Athletics are currently sitting in second place in the division. As has been the case in recent seasons, even with new faces, the A’s are showing that they’re not an easy win. Could all of the rookies and prospects the team acquired become the next generation in the Bay (if the team doesn’t leave for Las Vegas)?