The A’s announced a series of roster moves before tonight’s game in Seattle. Right-hander Adrián Martínez and infielder Vimael Machin have been promoted from Triple-A Las Vegas, as previously reported. Oakland also reinstated outfielder Skye Bolt from the 60-day injured list, placed Jed Lowrie on the 10-day IL due to a left shoulder sprain, and optioned center fielder Cristian Pache and starter Adam Oller to Triple-A. Bolt’s activation required a 40-man roster spot, which has been created by designating reliever Adam Kolarek for assignment.
Kolarek has spent the past couple seasons in Oakland. The A’s acquired him from the Dodgers in February 2021, sending infielder Sheldon Neuse the other way. (Oakland has since reacquired Neuse via waivers). Kolarek has bounced on and off the active roster since that point, making 27 combined appearances. He was tagged for ten runs in nine innings last season, and it’s been a similar struggle thus far in 2022.
Through 17 2/3 innings, the southpaw has posted a 4.58 ERA. Kolarek has struck out only 11.4% of batters faced on a 4.7% swinging strike rate, and he’s walked a personal-high 10.1% of opponents. Kolarek has never missed many bats, but he’s seen his average fastball drop from the 91-92 MPH range down to 88.1 MPH this year. The 33-year-old has also allowed eight runs over 12 2/3 frames with Las Vegas during his optional stints.
Those struggles led the A’s to move on, but Kolarek could still hold some appeal to other clubs. The sidearmer has typically been excellent at handling left-handed opponents. For his career, he’s held southpaws to a pitiful .190/.243/.260 line over 277 plate appearances. Right-handers have teed off at a .311/.383/.490 clip, but that kind of situational dominance made him a productive bullpen option in Los Angeles and Tampa Bay earlier in his career. Kolarek also routinely generates ground-balls at a 60% clip or better, and that’s been the case even as his velocity and swing-and-miss have taken a step back in Oakland.
While Kolarek’s time in the organization could be coming to an end, the A’s are surely hopeful Pache will yet emerge as a member of the long-term core. The 23-year-old was one of four players (arguably the headliner) of the Spring Training return from the Braves for Matt Olson. He’s gone on to start 60 of the team’s 72 games in center field, but his first season in green and gold has been a disappointment.
Pache carries just a .159/.203/.224 line across 214 plate appearances. He’s collected only eight extra-base hits while walking at a subpar 5.1% rate and striking out 26.2% of the time. Of the 206 MLB hitters with at least 200 trips to the plate, Pache ranks last with a 24 wRC+ (suggesting he’s been 76 percentage points worse than the league average batter). The non-competitive A’s continued to give him opportunities to get on track offensively, but his woes have spiraled of late. Dating back to the start of June, he’s collected only six hits and three walks over 19 games.
Of course, Pache has long been a glove-first player. He drew top prospect attention during his time in the Atlanta system based largely on the strength of his defense, which most evaluators suggested could be among the league’s best. Pache has lived up to that reputation early in his MLB days. He ranks fourth among outfielders in Statcast’s Outs Above Average metric this season, checking in seven plays better than par. That kind of ability could make Pache a perennial Gold Glove candidate, but he’ll need to hit far better than he has this season if he’s to earn everyday run in the majors.
The Braves had optioned Pache during both the 2020 and ’21 campaigns. Assuming he spends 20+ days in the minors this year, he’ll exhaust his third and final option year. That means the A’s will need to keep him on the active roster next season, assuming they don’t want to make him available to other teams. Needless to say, organizational higher-ups will hope that this latest reboot against upper minors arms will help him take a step forward at the plate. Pache owns a more serviceable .267/.331/.414 line through 458 Triple-A plate appearances; the A’s would be thrilled if he could come anywhere close to that kind of production in the majors given his defensive acumen.
How quickly Pache returns to the big leagues will depend in large part on how he hits in Las Vegas. Getting back at some point this season would have important service time repercussions, as he’s just shy of reaching a full year of big league service. Pache entered the 2022 campaign with 79 days. Players reach a full service year upon accruing 172 days on an MLB roster or injured list, meaning he needs 93 days this season to surpass the one-year mark. Pache has tallied around 84 days in the majors to this point, so he needs about a week and a half more time in the big leagues in 2022 to keep on track towards a post-2027 free agent trajectory.
While Pache tries to find his footing, the A’s figure to turn center field over to Bolt. The 28-year-old hasn’t played in the big leagues this season due to an oblique strain, but he’ll get the nod in center tonight. Bolt has only 37 games of MLB experience under his belt, but he’s out of options and has to remain on the active roster or be designated for assignment now that he’s healthy.
Pache’s defense is great but his bat is anemic. He’s still only 23 so hopefully he figures it out.
Pache should’ve been down a month ago, but Bolt isn’t exactly an upgrade. This team is going nowhere.
Damn it. Added Pache to a couple of my “under .5 hits parlays”. Had to get em in before seeing rosters. That sucks. Pache is a great go too
Agreed. Pache is too raw. He needs more seasoning at the AAA level. Maybe a whole year or two?
He’s clearly a swing adjustment away, shouldn’t take more than a few weeks after he fixes it, but who knows when he will fix it.
Pache’s body type is really similar to Mike Trout, Pache probably has 30 homer power, but his swing is total garbage right now. Gotta fix it….
Pache’s problem isn’t his swing as much as it’s his approach. The A’s need to bust him to single A and start over.
Yes, that too, both swing+approach are in the toilet. Luckily his defense is elite, so he’s almost ready, he won’t have to hit too much to be a good player, but he DOES have to get his OBP over .300, not under .200.
There is zero chance pache fixes his swing in a few weeks. He needs a lot more time down. He didn’t fix it in two stints with Atlanta and still hasn’t with Oakland. If it was a simple tweak it would have been done by now. He’s still young he will figure it out
Pache looks more like an athletic Pablo Sandoval. I think the main hope is his contact improves and he gets enough singles/doubles to become a valuable, defense first outfielder.
Please tell me you’re kidding. Mike Trout is an premier athlete in a sculpted, muscular frame. Pache looks like a cousin of the Pillsbury Doughboy or the Michelin man, so soft in the midsection. A couple donuts away from a confirmed Jelly Belly.
He’s at a crossroads. If he can’t hit at least .260 at LV, he isn’t going to stick in the bigs, with all due respect to Joe Rudi.
So wild to think Pache isn’t on the A’s if Freeman’s agent told him about the Braves final offer.
What’s Close’s address so I can send him an Edible Arrangement?
Can you ‘splain this please? About Freeman’s agent?
Did the A’s miss on every trade this off season?
Even Franco knows the real get was Shea Langeliers, who was tabbed to be ATL’s C of the future. He was the hardest for AA to part with. Pache wouldn’t even be playing in the OF this year, with Acuña’s injury issues and trotting out Ozuna in LF.
You grading offseason trades THE NEXT JUNE now???
Stop it. Cease and desist. Don’t do this. Estes is 20 years old. They’re all too young and youre using a small sample, which is just dumb dumb dumb dumb….
How are their minor league numbers?
Harris had already passed Pache in the Braves’ depth chart. Langeliers is the biggest chip in that trade. His ceiling is Buster Posey 2.0 and he might just reach it.
Braves fans will tell you that Langeliers was the headliner, not Pache.
He was, Pache can’t hit.
Joe Rudi hit .186, .177 & .189 as a 20-22 year old in over 300 at bats in the majors. Then He figured it out. Give the kid time.
Agreed, especially with the glove, cause Langeliers has some hit tool questions. But he seems to be answering those in the minors currently. That said, Shea’s floor is higher than Pache with the bat. But lord if both can be league avg at the plate, their defense will make them borderline elite. Hard to find better defensive players even in the show.
THE RETURN OF SKYE BOLT
Pache is a example of A’s cheapness. Even the Braves knew he was a bust at the plate. If A’s had good scouts they would see he has no plate discipline. The good thing is we will not hear Dallas Braden’s weak excuses he hit the ball hard and nothing to show for it every game.
I thought Céspedes was undisciplined at the plate and look what he became the first 3-4 years but of course then the jack of all trades A’s Billy Beane decided he had enough and traded Céspedes to the Red Sox in another not-so good trade though Billy has insisted all this time it was a good trade getting the lefty Jon Lester back.
But we still have to hear the rest of Braden’s nonsense. Needs to appeal to his main demographic, corny dads ages 38-55.
we need swing-and-miss arms badly, but we also need lefty relievers. i can see friedman looking at kolarek again
Pache won’t work it out, he’ll be put on waivers and then he’ll be claimed by the Braves so he can play with Gwinnett.
Should have asked for Harris II and Contreras…
Seriously though, the Braves said any two that aren’t Harris II + a couple low level arms.
All I can think was OAK bought the endless hype of fans including Pache and Watters in endless trade possibilities. I was never sold on Pache based on his REAL numbers in the minors, and I’m not even sure Watters will be anything people have projected him to be. Joe Adell is a little older example of a remarkable talent that just hasn’t shown any ability to hit at the major league level. Pache has time, but OAK has to be dedicated to leaving him at AAA until he actually figures it out – not just until there’s an injury that necessitates his promotion.
I’ve been saying it as a Braves fan for quite some time, stop calling Pache up. Let him sit and season in the minors and resist the urge to call up Shea. Braves have this horrible experience of calling up guys a bit too early. Some have worked out like gold, other have been meltdowns and they refuse to just send them back and let them season. Kyle wright is an example of both sides… brought him up too early, but finally let him season and now he’s awesome. Pache, Wilson, Muller, Elder, Davidson, touki, Newcomb… All guys that need or needed more seasoning. Let Pache cook in the minors… he’ll figure it out
Braves fans came at me in drothes last year when I saw Pache was an overrated prospect that can’t hit in the majors.
As a Nats fan, I can’t help but think of Victor Robles as a comp for Pache. When the Nats traded Giolito, Robles became the #1 prospect in the system. In July 2017 he was ranked by one list as the #5 prospect in MLB and made the Futures Game.
Unfortunately, after having a good year in 2019 when he led NL CF with 22 defensive runs saved, was a GG finalist, and hit .255/.326/.419, Robles has been pretty bad. Hopefully Pache doesn’t do what Robles did a couple offseasons ago and try to bulk up. That may have permanently screwed up Robles.