Inside The Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies Complete Trade for Former Top MLB Prospect

The Philadelphia Phillies completed a trade with the Oakland Athletic's on Wednesday for outfielder Cristian Pache.

Kade Kistner

Philadelphia Phillies Complete Trade for Former Top MLB Prospect
Philadelphia Phillies Complete Trade for Former Top MLB Prospect /
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The Philadelphia Phillies have trade for Oakland Athletic's outfielder Cristian Pache in exchange for right-handed pitcher Billy Sullivan, a Delaware native. 

Pache was the former top prospect in all of MLB as recently as the 2021 MLB season. He was sent to Oakland from the Atlanta Braves in the Matt Olson trade. 

The outfielder is an elite defender in center field but his bat has never come around owning a .156/.205/.234 in 332 plate appearances. 

Perhaps the idea is to platoon him with Brandon Marsh as Pache is a right-handed hitter, something Philadelphia has been looking at adding in the outfield all spring. 

Pache is a low-risk, high-reward player. If he can develop into the player he was once projected to be then the Phillies will have struck gold. If not, then Philadelphia gave up a minor league pitcher with 4.59 ERA in 51.0 innings at the Double-A level. Sullivan also comes with some concerns, especially his walk rate. 

It was worth the risk and Philadelphia hopes to unlock Pache's full potential. 

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Kade Kistner
KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl.  During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated.  Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.

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