The A's are Winning the Matt Olson Trade

Jason Burke | Jul 9, 2024

Jul 6, 2024; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson (28) reacts after being called out on strikes against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports /

Whenever a trade occurs, everyone wants to jump in and give their opinions. Was it a good trade? A bad one? Who got fleeced? It's a perpetual cycle any time an exchange is made between teams for players of at least moderate name recognition.

Back in 2022, the Oakland A's traded away a number of key players to their most recent postseason runs in Chris Bassitt, Sean Manaea, Matt Chapman, and Matt Olson. The Atlanta Braves were the team that landed Olson, and in his first season he wasn't quite the player that he had been the previous year, but he put up a 120 OPS+, with 100 being league average. He also cranked 34 homers that year.

Last season Olson was one of the best hitters in the game, posting a league-high 54 homers, 139 RBI, and a .604 slug. He was an absolute beast. The leaders in OPS+ that season were Shohei Ohtani (184), Corey Seager (174), Ronald Acuña Jr. (169), Mookie Betts (164), and then Olson with a 163. He was in the upper echelon in the sport.

The Atlanta Braves did pretty well in trading for Olson and then signing him to an extension ahead of the '22 season.

That said, this year has been a different story. While the year the former A's slugger put up last season will be difficult to overcome in the grand scheme of the entire trade, this year's version of Olson is the worst we've seen in a full season, not including the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, in his career.

Through 89 games (373 plate appearances), Olson is batting .239 with a .322 OBP, 13 homers, 42 RBI, and a .746 OPS, good for a 109 OPS+. That's a lot closer to league average than the top of the league. FanGraphs has his pegged as a 0.7 WAR player.

Because of this, the A's actually have two players that were acquired in the Olson deal that are at least matching his performance thus far this year.

The key piece of the trade, Shea Langeliers, is one of those players. The A's catcher has played in 77 games, is batting .205 with a .254 OBP, but has hit 17 homers, has 46 RBI, and is just below league average with the bat, holding a 97 OPS+. With his defense behind the dish factored in, FanGraphs has him with a 1.3 WAR. That's nearly double what Olson has provided as we approach the All-Star Game.

The other player is right-hander Joey Estes, who in his most recent start tossed a Maddux, needing just 92 pitches to finish nine innings against the Los Angeles Angels. He holds a 3-3 record in ten starts spanning 55 1/3 innings with a 4.39 ERA (4.13 FIP). In recent starts he has been compared to former A's and Braves starter Tim Hudson for his bulldog mentality on the bump. In his ten starts, Estes has matched Olson's 0.7 fWAR this season.

It's still fair to say that the A's probably could have gotten a little more in those deals they made in 2022 to make the total value a little closer, but we're also seeing that with a little bit of time, the A's didn't do quite as bad as everyone initially thought.

Langeliers is coming into his own behind the dish and is working on being more consistent at the plate. Estes is still just 22-years-old and is already showing flashes of a legitimate big-league starting pitcher.

For each player, consistency will be key as they continue to hone their skills, but while they're doing that, each player is also currently holding pace with the guy they were traded for this season.

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