MLB Draft 2017: Phillies Select Adam Haseley Eighth Overall

The spotlight wasn’t exactly shining as brightly on the Phillies as it was at this time last year, when they selected Mickey Moniak with the first overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft. But the #8 pick in the 2017 MLB Draft is still pretty important in the grand scheme of things for this franchise, and the Phillies are pinning their hopes and dreams on an outfielder for the second year in a row. (Well, third, if you remember that Cornelius Randolph, a shortstop at the time of his drafting, exists.)

Enter Adam Haseley, a left-handed hitting and throwing junior from the University of Virginia. John Sickels of Minor League Ball filed this report on Haseley about a month ago, and our own Cormican had this to say about Haseley earlier in the spring:

Haseley is another in this season’s long list of two-way players. Unlike a few of the others I’ve profiled, Adam has clearly separated where his future is. His a perfectly fine future LOOGY candidate and possible back-end starter, but he’s a potential second-division regular as an OF. The ceiling isn’t huge and he does have some tweener risk (not quite the range for center, not quite the power for the corners), but he’s shown more power this year (though he’d still be slightly below average for a corner OF) and his range in center won’t win him any Gold Gloves, but he’s not slow either, so it would be passable, especially if a team had above average corner speed to fill the gaps.

Haseley is from Windermere, Florida, and attended The First Academy before moving on to the Cavaliers. While there was some projectability in his pitching arsenal, the Phillies certainly have made it clear that he will be an outfielder.

So what do they get in Haseley? They get a guy who walked 44 times and struck out just 21 times this season, showing an advanced feel for the strike zone. He hit .390/.491/.659 for the year.

He displays above-average speed and has a strong enough arm that he could fit at any outfield spot, but there’s a long way to go before we know exactly where he may fit best into the puzzle or where he’ll be assigned. Lakewood would seem to be a safe bet, and he could join Moniak in that outfield shortly. The Phillies have certainly stocked the outfield cupboard well over the last few years via the draft and by trade. Haseley now joins a pretty talented crew of outfielders in the minors.

While Haseley probably won’t have to pitch again, it’s worth noting that he was an impressive guy at Virginia: He posted a 2.51 ERA and allowed just 140 hits in 172 innings over his three years on the mound. But now he’ll be able to focus solely on his hitting and his defense.

The Phillies will pick again Monday night in the second round, 45th overall.