Thanks to taking Moniak #1 overall the Phillies had the ability to shift money down their draft, making the #42 pick very important for their overall draft haul. It had been hard to nail down who the guy was that would fall to the Phillies, and in the end it was the guy they had been linked to the whole time. Kevin Gowdy, a projectable RHP, was part of a UCLA recruiting class that included Mickey Moniak and Blake Rutherford.
Gowdy has been described by many of the people I have talked to and read as the most polished high school pitcher in the draft. He has an easy repeatable delivery and a good feel for the strikezone. He does lack the high octane stuff of some of his peers, but he is already 90-93, has touched up to 95, and there is room for him to fill out and add a bit more velocity. His slider is already a weapon and he shows feel for a future above average to plus changeup. Overall he has a mid rotation, to slightly above, ceiling and he could move quickly for a high school pitcher. If it were not for the college commitment Gowdy likely would have gone in the mid to late first round.
In terms of where he slots in the system, he is probably in the same range as Adonis Medina, though his polish likely has him ahead for now. He should open on the GCL roster, and it won’t be a disappointment if he spends all year there.
Overall, Gowdy is not the sexiest pick the Phillies could have made at #42, and he is a bit safe. Safe is not necessarily a bad thing when talking about high school pitchers where the failure rate is high. Gowdy has enough upside to justify the pick. The combination of Moniak and Gowdy gives the Phillies a nice mix of upside and safety heading into Day 2. Gowdy will certainly be overslot for his pick value, but he won’t take up all of the savings from taking Moniak #1.