By: Brandon Apter, contributor 
It's been no secret that over the past weeks, the Phillies have been seeking outfield depth. They are without Aaron Altherr for 4-6 months, Cody Asche is nursing a strained oblique and there aren't too many veteran options within the organization to fill outfield holes. A source tells Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com that the Phillies are showing strong interest in 33-year-old veteran outfielder Will Venable.
The Phillies, who have been looking to add outfield help for the last two weeks, are showing strong interest in veteran Will Venable, according to a baseball source.
Venable, 33, opted out of his contract with the Cleveland Indians over the weekend. The left-handed hitting Venable can play three outfield positions.
In eight major league seasons, Venable has a .251 average with a .721 OPS. His best year came in 2013 with the Padres, when he hit .268 with 22 home runs and 53 RBI's. This spring with Cleveland, he hit just .133 (4-for-30) with two RBI's, two steals, five runs scored, eight strikeouts and six walks. He split time between the Padres and Rangers last year and hit a combined .244.
Currently, the Phillies outfield consists of Odubel Herrera, offseason acquisition Peter Bourjos and Rule-5 pick Tyler Goeddel. With Goeddel's inexperience above the Double-A level, Venable could be a viable platoon option with the ability to play anywhere in the outfield.. The Phillies also still have Cedric Hunter and David Lough on the roster, with one of the two likely to break camp with the team as a reserve outfielder.
