Mickey Moniak posting career year with Colorado after washing out with Phillies, Angels. Should Rockies bring him back in 2026?

Mickey Moniak has been the disappointment Now he wants to keep being the pleasant surprise The first overall pick by the Phillies in the outfielder never stuck with Philadelphia where he spent parts of three seasons before being issued It was the same story with the Angels where a breakout campaign in was followed by a fall-off in and then his release at the end of this year s spring training That s when the Rockies signed Moniak and he s played well enough in to warrant consideration to be part of the unit s rebuild going forward I hope he feels like he s located a home here because I think he belongs interim manager Warren Schaeffer revealed He s a very good performer which he s shown all year When he s gotten his opportunities he s run with them The sky is the limit for Mickey in Denver He s been everything we ve longed him to be this year and more and you definitely see the skills that made him a first overall pick Moniak who is playing on a million salary this season has two arbitration years left So he s under Colorado control in and should the club see him fitting into its plans as the Rockies try to tackle a way forward following three straight -loss seasons The -year-old has only accounted for minus- bWAR this season and doesn t light up the sabermetrics with his defense but his glove is reliable enough at both corner outfield spots and as Brenton Doyle s backup in center field At the plate he s posted career highs across the board including a scorching September in which he s been one of Colorado s best hitters The whole year I m getting in the box and trying not to think about what my hands are doing or anything other than competing trying to get a good pitch to hit and putting a good swing on it Moniak explained I feel like I m doing that right now Considering he was a flier signing Moniak is one of Colorado s meager roster successes this season Entering Wednesday Moniak was slashing with four homers and RBIs this month That includes a -for- performance on Sunday in San Diego with two homers and a career-high five RBIs then another homer on Tuesday On Sunday he became only the third participant since to record at least four hits two homers two steals and five RBIs in a single competition joining the Dodgers Shohei Ohtani and the Reds Brandon Phillips It was a single match that encapsulated the promising Philadelphia saw in Moniak nine years ago Overall Moniak has posted personal bests in games runs hits triples eight homers and RBIs in And he s been solid in the clutch slashing with runners in scoring position That latter number is the third-highest slugging percentage with RISP in the majors All of that adds up to what Moniak hopes is an extended run in LoDo The Rockies have had tabs on him since he was a prep star at La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad Calif The club ended up taking high school right-hander Riley Pint instead at No overall that year a selection that ultimately did not work out The Rockies took a chance on me early in the year after getting issued so I m forever grateful to this organization Moniak disclosed They ve proved confidence in me since I was an -year-old kid I ve dependably known what I was capable of doing and I feel like the Rockies have unfailingly known what I was capable of doing I love being a Rockie love Denver love the fans I hope to make a long-term home here for as long as I can Related Articles Rockies late rally falls short in - loss to Marlins at rainy Coors Field Tanner Gordon emerges as Rockies best starter as season nears close Mickey Moniak has career day but slumping Rockies lose to Padres Rockies analysis GM Bill Schmidt s track record illustrates why front-office change appears imminent Rockies pounded by Padres lose for the th time in games Despite being a scant years south of Moniak would be a veteran in the outfield should the Rockies re-sign him On the current -man roster Doyle is the same age as Moniak Beyond that it s a bunch of big-league pups in the forecast for Jordan Beck Yanquiel Fern ndez and Zac Veen at this moment in Triple-A each have less than two years of utility time while prospects Sterlin Thompson Jared Thomas and infielder outfielder Charlie Condon could also rise to the majors next summer Southpaw Kyle Freeland thinks the Rockies should bring back Moniak who would be a cost-effective veteran to lead that young group alongside Doyle I hope to continue to have him as a teammate Freeland explained Want more Rockies news Sign up for the Rockies Insider to get all our MLB analysis