Phillies 2016 Grades: Outfielders
By Matt Veasey
TYLER GOEDDEL
Goeddel was the top overall choice in last December’s MLB Rule 5 Draft by the Phillies, who took him away from the Tampa Bay Rays organization and found a way to keep him all season long.
To their credit, the Phils didn’t hide and baby Goeddel just to get him through the year. He played in 92 games and received 234 plate appearances, both third among the team’s outfielders to this point in the season.
Goeddel, who will turn 24 years old in late October, produced a .192/.258/.291 slash line with four homers, 16 RBI, 17 runs scored, and just three stolen bases during his first exposure to the third deck of big league ballparks.
Defensively, Goeddel showed athleticism while misplaying some balls, but also making some highlight reel plays, as the below video demonstrates his strong arm.
Over 77 games played in the outfield, the vast majority of those in left field, Goeddel made three errors in 96 chances. But he also had five assists in his 496.2 innings.
While he showed that he absolutely has a future in Major League Baseball, it appears at this point that it will be one similar to the five years older Bourjos, as a 5th outfielder.
The Phillies will almost certainly have him play with AAA Lehigh Valley in the 2017 season, where he will receive a few hundred necessary at-bats at that level.
His ceiling will be determined by his performance back in the minors, but Goeddel demonstrated clearly this year that he can at least hold his own, and that his floor has a place in MLB somewhere down the line. Whether that will be off the bench in Phillies pinstripes remains to be seen.