Raimel Tapia begins his unorthodox batting stance with a stretch toward the sky and a shake of his hips. As he steps into the batter’s box, he scrunches his lanky 6-foot-2 frame into a crouch like an accordion, then dips even further with two strikes against him.

“It started when I was playing in the Dominican,” Tapia said through a translator last week, describing his stance. “I’m thankful to God that it’s been working good for me. I’ve just kind of kept it the same. I haven’t changed anything.”

In a short window, Tapia’s unique approach at the plate and an overall game as colorful as his dyed-blonde hair have seemed to fit with the Rockies. He entered Friday hitting .276 (8-for-29) through 12 games with two stolen bases. And he was a productive 6-of-19 from the leadoff spot while starting five consecutive games in place of injured center fielder Charlie Blackmon earlier this month.

What remains to be seen is his how Tapia fits into Colorado’s outfield plans heading into the offseason. The group has proven to be a position of strength in 2016. Charlie Blackmon is having a career year from the leadoff spot. Carlos Gonzalez, whose current contract with the Rockies ends at the end of the 2017 season, has been healthy and is responding with his normal all-star numbers. David Dahl has dealt with fatigue of late but has shown he can hit consistently at the major-league level.

The potential value that Tapia could add to an outfield mix that also includes veteran Gerardo Parra will present interesting choices this offseason for the Rockies about how to use their outfield assets.

“I’ve said it before that depth is important to us,” Rockies general manager Jeff Bridich said last week as he overlooked batting practice at Chase Field in Phoenix. “With this situation, as the roster stands right now, we’re going to have flexibility, which is nice. We have guys with options and an ability to retain some of our depth, if not at the major-league level then potentially at the minor-league level.”

Last winter the Rockies took their outfield depth to the trade market, sending outfielder Corey Dickerson to the Tampa Bay Rays for pitchers Jake McGee and German Marquez. Though McGee had posted a 2.77 ERA in six seasons with the Rays while compiling a 1.017 WHIP, he’s had a disappointing first season with the Rockies. He has a 4.91 ERA with a 1.523 WHIP, and his strikeout numbers have dipped significantly. The book is still out on Marquez, who was the Eastern League pitcher of the year this season and went 11-6 with a 3.13 overall in the minors before earning a September call-up.

Improving the bullpen will once again be a top priority for Bridich and the Rockies. The unit is one of the worst in baseball and collapsed this season just as the team had pushed above .500 in early August. Will the club use its assets in the outfield to once again target relievers?

“It’s tough to say what would or might happen in the offseason,” Bridich said. “It’s still too early to say that with either the trade market or with free agency or whatever else.”

Blackmon, who has hit a career-high 27 home runs, could be a big name in trade rumors this offseason, as could Gonzalez The Rockies fielded calls from teams about the two outfielders last offseason. Blackmon’s name also was a popular one near the Aug. 1 trade deadline, and his stock has only risen during a huge second half.

Then there is the matter of Parra, who signed a three-year, $27.5 million contract in the offseason and has struggled. Entering Friday he had a slash line of .255 (batting average)/.275 (on-base percentage)/.401 (slugging percentage) with six home runs and only nine walks. Parra has shown an ability to fill in at first base, but Bridich didn’t say whether he’d be a long-term option at the position.

“He’s certainly athletic enough,” Bridich said. “He’s athletic enough moving around, athletic enough with the glove. Sometimes you put guys over there and there is a rigidness or stiffness to what they do. He’s not that way. He looks pretty natural, actually. That for me fits into positional flexibility. … How much time he gets over there in the future, I don’t know. But it’s nice to be able to have that.”

Bridich has stressed the need to continue growing organizational depth, and the emergence of Tapia could make for some intriguing options as the Rockies head into an offseason with big implications. If nothing else, the Rockies have options with the outfield, whether they choose to move pieces or not.

“It’s a position of strength for us moving forward,” Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. “It’s a good problem to have. There’s a lot of talented guys. Your depth pretty much always gets tested at some point. We’ve got a good head start with the depth we have. A lot of that is going to have to play itself out.”