Baseball Philadelphia Phillies: Evaluating Mickey Moniak’s Make-up by Matthew Burks July 19, 2016 Mickey Moniak The Philadelphia Phillies selected high school outfielder, Mickey Moniak, with the number one overall pick in the draft this year. As we all know, being the number one pick brings along with it some lofty expectations. That being said, what can Phillies fans expect out of Moniak through his development in the minors over the next few years? Although many scouts may disagree about what his ceiling is, all of them seem to agree on one thing and that is, he will stay in centerfielder throughout his career. Any draft pick has both risk and upside. Drafting a guy like Moniak is a bit safer in that, a GM or coach won’t needed to worry about how he fairs at another position. Much like they did last year, when they drafted Cornelius Randolph who played shortstop in high school but upon being drafted was moved to left field. The one big worry when it comes to Moniak’s make-up has to do with wondering if he’ll ever manage to hit for average power. Many scouts including ESPN Insider, Keith Law, believe there isn’t much room in Moniak’s swing to generate power. That, along with a relatively lean frame, makes it hard to envision the 18-year-old ever developing any power in the majors. Still, there are other scouts that believe he has the potential to reach quality power. Some would even go as far as saying he has the ability to be above average when he gets to the big leagues to go with his above average hit tool. Very few scouts, though, actually think he’ll reach plus power. One comparison that has made its way through the analyst is Marlins outfielder, Christian Yelich. Yelich plays his position quite well, hits for contact, and lacks in power. All of these are the same qualities that have been given to Moniak by scouts. With Moniak’s ability to hit for average, if he is even capable of being an average power hitter in the MLB, the Phillies will undoubtedly have a star in their line-up when the time comes. Obviously, this is years of speculation that is being made. After all, the likelihood of Moniak making it to the majors within three years seems extremely unlikely, even with rapid progression through the Phillies system. Still, Moniak possesses a lot of tools to be a big leaguer. As long as he keeps working hard and gaining experience Moniak should be a pretty good ballplayer when it’s all said and done. Post Views: 1,184 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Matthew Burks Matt is a Staff Writer for DoubleGSports.com Latest posts by Matthew Burks (see all) Should Philadelphia Phillies fans be excited about Sixto Sanchez? - July 14, 2017 Phillies prospect Nick Williams seems to finally be heating up - June 12, 2017 Why Philadelphia Phillies fans should be excited about Scott Kingery - May 26, 2017 Aaron Altherr off to a hot start for Phillies - May 9, 2017 Related TopicsMickey MoniakMLBMLB DraftPhiladelphia Phillies Click to comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 From Paramus High School to CBS Sports, Spero Dedes is making waves in sports broadcasting by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on October 27, 2020 Women in Sports: Podcast Host, New York Riptide Sideline Reporter, Dani Wexelman by Luke Porco | posted on March 3, 2020 Lochte, Dressel and Ledecky all Chasing Gold at 2021 Tokyo Olympics by Anthony Paradiso | posted on April 18, 2021 You Know I’m Right, Episode 109: The Athletic’s Marc Carig (Audio/Video) by Nicholas Durst | posted on April 19, 2021 More in Baseball You Know I’m Right, Episode 112: New York Jets’ Insider Brian Costello (Audio/Video) On the 112th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 109: The Athletic’s Marc Carig (Audio/Video) On the 109th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 108: WFAN’s Sweeny Murti (Audio/Video) On the 108th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 107: New York Post’s Columnist Mike Vaccaro (Audio/Video) On the 107th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... Swept By Miners, New Jersey Jackals Fall From First Place Patriots Power Past Skeeters 7-5