Elephant Rumblings: Chad Pinder headed to Reds organization

Feb 1, 2023 - 3:00 PM

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Happy Wednesday, Athletics Nation!

It isn’t official yet, but Robert Murray at Fansided reported on Monday that the Cincinnati Reds and Chad Pinder are in agreement on a minor league deal.

The versatile utilityman has spent his entire ten-year professional baseball career in the A’s organization, appearing with the big league club in every season since 2016. Pinder has played every defensive position except for catcher, but primarily played the corner outfield positions and occasionally second or third base.

Pinder showed promise during the 2018 season in which the A’s sprung into contention and ended a three-year postseason drought. That year, Chad posted a career-high wRC+ of 115 and positive defensive marks, all good for an fWAR of 2.3 in 110 games.

Unfortunately, Pinder has struggled with plate discipline throughout his career, and that 2018 season looks like it may have been the pinnacle of Chad’s career. Since then, he’s been below average at the plate and of marginal to no value relative to the replacement-level player.

Pinder, MLB 2016-22: .242/.294/.417, 1740 PA, 96 wRC+, 62 HR, 5.9% BB, 27.3% Ks 2.5 fWAR

In the wake of departures after the 2021 season, Pinder had a chance to step up and play a key role, but his performance in 2022 was lackluster and I have noticed some comments from AN members lately who would like to see Chad move on. Wish, granted.

I think a change of scenery could do both Pinder and the A’s some good at this point, but I enjoyed following Pinder in Oakland. He was another great guy to have in the clubhouse, and I saw enough of him to remember some exhilarating moments he had with the A’s, such as this pinch hit grand slam off Tyler Clippard from 2018:

Pinder will apparently vie for a spot with the Reds as a non-roster invitee this spring. Murray also reported that the 30-year-old has lost 15 pounds this offseason, so it sounds like he is going the distance in preparing to make good on his next opportunity. Athletics Nation thanks you for your service and wishes you the best in 2023, Chad Pinder!

A’s Coverage:

• Willis: Oakland Athletics receive C+ grade for offseason from The Athletic
• Willis: Tyler Soderstrom lands at No. 60 on Keith Law’s Top 100 prospect list
• Lockard: Oakland A’s 2023 starting rotation outlook: Can upside make up for lack of experience? ($)

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I truly hope so.

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Mon Dieu!