Cristian Rafael Pache was originally signed by Braves scout Matias Laureano…was tabbed by Baseball America as the No. 21 international prospect at the time of his signing.
2021
Was on the Opening Day roster for Atlanta and hit .111 with a home run and four RBI in 22 games over two stints with the Braves. ...Struck out 25 times in 68 plate appearances or once per 2.72 plate appearances. ...Went 2-for-15 (.133) with his lone home run and a .533 OPS against left-handed pitchers, 5-for-48 (.104) with a .303 OPS against right-handers. ...Batted .075 with the bases empty compared to .174 with runners on…was 1-for-3 with a grand slam with the bases loaded. ...Hit .080 against National League teams, .231 in five interleague games. ...Appeared exclusively in center field on defense where he made 20 starts…made one error in 43 chances (.977 fielding percentage) and did not have an assist. ...Started 17 games batting eighth, two hitting ninth and one in the seven spot. ...Returned to Atlanta for the postseason and was on the Braves NLDS and NLCS rosters…appeared in two games but did not have an at bat. ...Spent the balance of the season at Triple-A Gwinnett where he batted .265 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI in 89 games…the batting average was his lowest as a minor leaguer but his .744 OPS was second only to his .802 in 2019. ...His 11 home runs follow a 12-home run output in 2019…connected for just nine home runs over his first three seasons. ...Batted .273 (62-for-227) with a .751 OPS against right-handed pitchers, .245 (23-for-94) with a .726 OPS against left-handers ...Had a .312 batting average with runners in scoring position…went 3-for-6 (.500) with five RBI with the bases loaded. ...Hit .319 with seven home runs, 29 RBI and a .866 OPS in 46 games at home, .206 with four home runs, 15 RBI and a .614 OPS in 43 contests on the road. ...Started 77 games in center field and four in right field…had six errors (.962 fielding percentage) and three assists. ...Went 4-for-10 (.400) in three starts at designated hitter and was 1-for-3 with a RBI as a pinch hitter. ...Hit in every spot in the order except clean-up…saw his most action with 46 games batting second and 23 hitting first…hit nine of his 11 home runs from the two spot.
DAY-BY-DAY: Was the Braves Opening Day starter in center field on April 1 at Philadelphia and went 1-for-4 with his first career extra base hit, a double…was 4-for-30 (.133) with two doubles in 11 games, including nine starts, before he was placed on the injured list on April 14 with a strained left groin…was reinstated from the IL and optioned to the Braves alternate camp on April 24…was recalled for his second stint on May 1 and hit his first regular season home run that day against Toronto, a grand slam in the second inning off Tommy Milone…the four RBI were a career-high and his first in the regular season…was 3-for-33 (.091) in 11 games during his second stint before returning to the injured list on May 14 with an inflamed right hamstring…was sent to Gwinnett on a rehab assignment on May 29 and played in one game before he was reinstated from the IL and optioned to Gwinnett on June 2…went 3-for-6 with a pair of doubles and two RBI June 5 vs. Jacksonville, his first of five three-hit games…had his first career two-homer game and drove in a season-high four runs on June 10 at Memphis… hit .348 with two home runs and six RBI over his first six games but then went 10-for-65 (.154) with four RBI over his next 19 contests from June 11-July 7…went 0-for-4 with a career-high tying four strikeouts on June 20 against Nashville…had four straight multiple-hit games from July 8-10 (8-for-15, .533) and hit .315 with three home runs, 10 RBI and 15 runs scored over a 15-game stretch from July 8-25…had a season-best six-game hitting streak from July 21-25 (6-for-19, .316)…homered in three consecutive games from Aug. 8-11…matched his season high with four RBI on Aug. 11 against Durham…hit .320 with a .906 OPS in 20 games in August and then batted .295 in 21 games in September…went 5-for-28 (.179) over his final eight games with Gwinnett…was added to Atlanta’s postseason roster for the NLDS and NLCS…was a defensive replacement in center field in the ninth inning of Game 4 of the NLDS against Milwaukee and pinch ran in the ninth inning of Game 2 of the NLCS against Los Angeles…did not have an at bat in either game.
2020
Made his major-league debut with a two-game stint in Atlanta in August…Spent the rest of the season at the club’s alternate training site...In his first career game, 8/21 vs. Philadelphia, got the start in left field and hit ninth…Went 1-for-4, singling off LH Cole Irvin... Came on as a defensive replacement, also in left field, in his second game… In his minor-league career, played just 22 games in left field, his fewest of any position he has played…Spent the majority of his time in center field (370 games, 362 starts) and also played right field (31 games, 30 starts)...Entered the season ranked by MLB.com as the Braves’ No. 1 prospect…Was the No. 14 prospect overall, including the fourth-best outfielder, trailing A.L. Rookie of the Year runner-up Luis Robert, the Angels’ Jo Adell and Mariners’ Jarred Kelenic...Named by Baseball America as the “Best Baserunner”, the “Best Defensive Outfielder” and as having the “Best Outfield Arm” in the Braves organization.
POSTSEASON
Made each of the Braves’ three postseason rosters and appeared in all 12 games…Hit .182/.280/.364 (4-for-22) with one double, one home run, four RBI and four runs scored... Started six games, Games 2-7 of the NLCS, all in centerfield…OF Adam Duvall suffered a strained left oblique during the middle of an at-bat in Game 1. Pache replaced him in Game 1, marking his first career postseason plate appearance…Came on with a 1-2 count and worked a walk...Appeared as a pinch runner or defensive replacement in the first five games...Started Game 2 of the NLCS at 21 years, 329 days old, becoming the youngest player to start in center field in the League Championship Series or World Series since fellow Braves OF Andruw Jones in 1998...Drove in one run in each of his first four career postseason starts, Games 2-6 of the NLCS, becoming just the second player in baseball history, his age or younger, to record an RBI in four straight postseason games…Current Washington OF Juan Soto also drove in one run in four straight in the 2019 World Series, Games 4-7…Soto’s stretch began with his 14th career postseason game...His first RBI was a run-scoring double in Game 2, the first RBI of his career, regardless of game…Since RBI were officially recorded in 1920, he is the first position player in Braves history to record an RBI in the postseason before doing so in the regular season…Pitcher Jorge Sosa did so for Atlanta in Game 3 of the 2005 NLDS…No player in the majors had done that since Houston’s Lance McCullers in Game 7 of the 2017 World Series, and no position player had done so since Colorado’s Seth Smith in Game 4 of the 2007 NLCS...With the RBI, became just the eighth center fielder his age or younger to drive in at least one run in any postseason game, joining, among others, Hall-of-Famers Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle... Hit his first career homer in Game 3… Also became the first player in franchise history to homer in the postseason before doing so in the regular season…Only six others in baseball history have done that, including most recently by Philadelphia’s Joe Blanton in Game 4 of the 2008 World Series…Only two other non-pitchers are on this list...At 21 years, 330 days, was the fourth-youngest Braves player to homer in the postseason…Andruw Jones did so three times at this age or younger and Ronald Acuña Jr. and Brian McCann each did so twice...Also became just the fifth-youngest center fielder to homer in the playoffs, with only Acuña Jr., A. Jones, Mantle and Bryce Harper younger.
2019
In his fourth professional season, split the campaign between Double-A Mississippi and Triple-A Gwinnett, hitting .277/.340/.462 (135- for-487…Set single-season career highs in games played (130), home runs (12), RBI (61), runs scored (63), doubles (36), triples (9) and walks (43)... His nine triples were tied for the most in the Braves farm system, while he ranked second in doubles and extra-base hits (57)…He also had 135 hits and 225 total bases, totals that both placed fourth in Atlanta's organization... Began the season with Mississippi and was a Southern League Mid- and Post-Season All-Star after compiling an .815 OPS (.278/.340/.474) in 104 games…Named by the organization as the M-Braves' co-Player of the Year with OF Drew Waters... Also tabbed as Mississippi's Player of the Month for May, and again for June…Had seven home runs and 24 RBI with a .991 OPS in 26 games in June... Selected to the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game at Progressive Field in Cleveland…Started in center field for the N.L. squad and led off…Went 0-for-4... Received his first Triple-A promotion on 8/5… Played in 26 games with the Stripers to close out the season and batted .274/.337/.411 (26-for-95) with 10 extra-base hits (8 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR)... Reached base safely in his final 14 contests with Gwinnett, including hitting safely in 13 of them... Concluded the year ranked by MLB.com as the Braves' No. 1 prospect... Named by Baseball America as the "Fastest Baserunner" in Atlanta's organization…Also tabbed as being the "Best Defensive Outfielder" and as having the "Best Outfield Arm" in the system... Selected to Atlanta's 40-man roster on 11/19.
2017
Played the full season with Single-A Rome and batted .281/.335/.343 over 119 games...Paced Rome in games (119), at-bats (469), runs, hits, triples and stolen bases to earn Rome's Player of the Year distinction from the organization...Ended the season in the Top 10 among Braves farmhands (minimum 200 at-bats) in triples (T1st, 8), stolen bases (2nd, 32), hits (3rd, 132), runs (7th, 60) and batting average (10th, .281)...Named a South Atlantic League Mid-Season All-Star after batting .300 (74-for-247) with a .354 on-base percentage over 62 games in the season's first "half."...Entered the season ranked by Baseball America as Atlanta's No. 13 prospect.
2016
Appeared in 57 games between the GCL Braves and rookie-level Danville in his first professional season, batting .309 (68-for-220) with 28 runs, 11 extra-base hits and 21 RBI between the two clubs...His .309 average paced all Braves farmhands (min. 200 at-bats)...Played 27 games with the GCL Braves before advancing to Danville on 7/31...Exited the season named by Baseball America as the 10th-best prospect in the Gulf Coast League, and the ninth-best farmhand in the Appalachian League.
