As a resident of Philadelphia, I know how badly sports fans in this city want to believe in their guys. They want the homegrown talent to succeed here. But across all sports, Philly sports franchises have gotten some rotten luck with top draft picks, and Mickey Moniak (the No. 1 pick in the 2016 MLB Draft by the Phillies) was just one instance of many promising talents that didn't pan out here.
But Moniak might be bucking the trend! In 2025, Moniak is still only 27 years old and he's putting together a career year; 15 home runs, six triples, .871 OPS... in Colorado. Pain.
This is how it often goes in baseball; prospects get too much hype and are expected to deliver results immediately. If they don't, teams often move on from them, only to watch them go thrive elsewhere. That's been the case with Moniak, who was pretty rough in Philadelphia... but then you realize he had 105 total plate appearances over three years and it suddenly feels like he didn't get enough of a shot with the Phils.
Suddenly, the player that Philly fans labeled a bust is one of the more valuable players available at the trade deadline. Baseball is a strange game.
Mickey Moniak could be a big domino at the MLB Trade Deadline
Being good on the 2025 Colorado Rockies is kind of an oxymoron. Moniak has been scorching hot recently but the team is 25-76 and is barreling toward one of the worst records in the modern era, so unfortunately he's not making much of a difference on the team's record — not his fault, obviously, as this team would still be bad if it had Barry Bonds and Shohei Ohtani in the lineup. Okay, they might be kind of good with those guys. But the point stands... the Rockies aren't very good.
As Moniak is likely only beginning to enter his prime, maybe the Rockies see him as a building block for the future. He, Hunter Goodman and Tyler Freeman appear to be at least the start of a talented young roster. If they don't view Moniak as part of the future, though, they'll likely be fielding plenty of calls for him in the next eight days.
After leaving Philly, Moniak had a breakout year with the Angels in 2023, took a big step back last year, and is now playing well again in his first year with the Rockies. Granted, these numbers are buoyed somewhat from hitting in the friendly confines of Coors Field, but everything about Moniak's approach has changed since his early days in Philadelphia.
Phillies could really use Mickey Moniak right now
It probably wouldn't feel great to give up a prospect to re-acquire a guy that a team already used the most valuable draft asset on nearly a decade ago... so no, I don't think the Phillies will try to trade for Moniak at the deadline.
But he, ironically, is exactly what the team is looking for as the trade deadline approaches. A power-hitting outfielder is second on the Phils trade deadline wishlist after relief pitching, as Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh have both struggled to hit even league-average this year.