Jacob Goebbert

Jacob Dwayne Goebbert (born September 24, 1987) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB) in 2014.

Career Amateur Goebbert attended Hampshire High School in Hampshire, Illinois, where he played for the school's baseball and football teams. He then attended Northwestern University, where he played college baseball for the Northwestern Wildcats baseball team in the Big Ten Conference. During his collegiate career, Goebbert played for the Southern Ohio Copperheads of the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League in collegiate summer baseball. In 2009, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod Baseball League.

Houston Astros The Houston Astros drafted Goebbert in the 13th round (401st overall) of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft. Playing in Minor League Baseball, the Astros promoted Goebbert from Single–A to Triple–A during the 2011 season. He finished the 2012 season with the Corpus Christi Hooks of the Double–A Texas League. He played for the Double-A Midland RockHounds of the Texas League and Triple-A Sacramento River Cats of the Pacific Coast League in 2013.

San Diego Padres On May 15, 2014, the Athletics traded Goebbert to the Padres for Kyle Blanks and a player to be named later, later identified as Ronald Herrera.

On June 19, 2014, Goebbert was called up from Triple-A El Paso to replace the injured first baseman Yonder Alonso. Goebbert was primarily an outfielder in the minor leagues after having played first base at Northwestern University, but El Paso had been occasionally playing him at first base after his acquisition by the Padres. At the time of his call-up, Goebbert was hitting .270 with 5 HR and 18 RBI at El Paso. Goebbert had a pinch-hit RBI single in his first Major League plate appearance on June 20 and made his first start in left field the next day. and he remained with the team for the rest of the season. Goebbert batted .218 with one home run in 101 at-bats, starting 19 games at first base and 4 in left field. He was designated for assignment by the Padres on January 7, 2015, but remained with the club, attending Padres spring training in 2015 as a non-roster invitee.

Pittsburgh Pirates On November 25, 2015, Goebbert signed to a major league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was designated for assignment on April 3, 2016.

Tampa Bay Rays He was claimed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays on April 6. He became a free agent after the 2016 season.

Arizona Diamondbacks On January 27, 2017, Goebbert signed a minor league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was released on March 28, 2017.

Personal life Goebbert and his wife, Heather, reside in Pingree Grove, Illinois during the offseason. When he is not playing, Goebbert hosts youth baseball clinics and works on the family farm in Hampshire.

Goebbert delivered the commencement address at Judson University in December 2013.