Who was the mystery man on AEW’s Holiday Bash show? This former baseball player
A former professional baseball player and Florida native has found the next chapter.
Palmetto High alum Granden Goetzman, who was a 2011 draft pick of the Tampa Bay Rays, was unveiled as part of a new faction on All Elite Wrestling last week.
AEW’s Dynamite Holiday Bash show on Dec. 21 featured a segment with rapper and music executive Rick Ross, of Miami Gardens, in the ring to mediate a meeting between Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland.
With Lee in the ring, Strickland walked down the aisle before Lee was attacked from behind by Parker Boudreaux and a mystery man.
That mystery man was a fully tattooed Goetzman.
Goetzman began his professional baseball career in 2011 after the Rays selected him with the 75th overall pick. He was a compensation pick from the Oakland Athletics for pitcher Grant Balfour. Goetzman never made it to Major League Baseball. Rather, he spent 10 seasons at various levels.
Goetzman, who turned 30 last month, was in the Rays organization from 2011 through 2017. In 2017, he reached Triple A with the Rays’ affiliate in Durham, North Carolina. He hit .314 with an OPS of .771 in 17 games for the Durham Bulls. He also bounced between Double-A, advanced Single A and rookie league ball that season.
In 2018 and 2019, Goetzman was in the Houston and St. Louis organizations. He last played professional baseball in 2021 for the Quintana Roo of the independent Mexican League.
Now he’s a professional wrestler, making his AEW debut as part of a new stable called “Mogul Affiliates.”
