Greg Deichmann may finally get his chance with Chicago Cubs

The Oakland A’s had been waiting for Greg Deichmann to live up to his potential for years. Their second round pick in the 2017 MLB Draft, Deichmann has the raw tools that make him appear to be the type of player that a team could build around.

The problem is that he was never able to have those tools manifest in game action. His power would be perfect to illustrate the point – he is considered to have 70 grade raw power which can appear during batting practice. However, he has just four homers on the season, and has never hit more than 11 homers in any professional campaign.

Greg Deichmann getting his chance with the Chicago Cubs

The A’s are done waiting. Deichmann was sent to the Chicago Cubs, along with minor league pitcher Daniel Palencia, for Andrew Chafin. Chafin fills an immediate need in the A’s bullpen, and they were clearly done waiting for Deichmann to become the player they had been hoping for.

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But with this trade comes opportunity. The Cubs are in sell mode, with Joc Pederson having been traded away earlier in the month. It is entirely probable that Kris Bryant will also be traded away, potentially opening another spot in the outfield. Diechmann, with his ability to play all three outfield positions, could finally make his major league debut.

Deichmann has had a solid, albeit somewhat disappointing, showing in Triple-A. He had produced a strong .300/.432/.449 batting line in his 257 plate appearances, but the power still has not appeared. He had just 13 doubles and four homers, surprisingly low totals for someone playing in the offensive haven that is Las Vegas.

Perhaps a new coaching staff and change of scenery will allow Deichmann to become the player he was expected to be. There certainly appears to be more opportunity for him in Chicago than there had been in Oakland, which will give him a chance to prove he can be more than a possible fourth outfielder. Sometimes, all a player needs is that chance.

Greg Deichmann never became the player that the Oakland A’s had envisioned. He should get the chance to prove himself with the Chicago Cubs.