Phillies Prospect Report: Moniak finally swinging the bat
Which Phillies prospects are improving and who took a step back?
Each week we examine two Phillies prospects trending up and two trending down. Here are the four we’ve decided to break down this week, ranging from relative unknowns and the former number one overall pick, Mickey Moniak.
Trending Up: David Parkinson, LHP, Lakewood
Yet another member of the Lakewood staff has been dealing lately. In just his second professional season, Parkinson is 6-1 with a 1.07 ERA in11 starts.
On June 17th, Parkinson threw 7 shutout innings, giving up 3 hits and striking out 11. He is in the midst of a streak in which he hasn’t given up an earned run since May 14th. That stretch includes 5 consecutive scoreless outings.
Parkinson, at 22 years old, is on the path to advancing through the system in short order.
Trending Up: Mickey Moniak, OF, Clearwater
The former No. 1 Overall Pick has turned it on of late down in Clearwater. He had a rough start to the season, but over the last few weeks he’s been what the Phillies expected.
Moniak is hitting .358 in his last 10 games as of June 14th, bringing his season average from .230 up to .254 in that span. He’s missed time with wisdom teeth surgery, but he’s finally back in the lineup after over a week off.
On the season, he has 11 doubles, 1 home run and 26 RBI. He still has low walk numbers, which is a bit concerning. He’s only walked 5 times in 54 games this year which is keeping his OBP below .300 at .272.
He needs to get on base more often, but his recent surge has been a sight for sore eyes for the Phillies.
Trending Down: McKenzie Mills, LHP, Clearwater
Mills has been back and forth between the rotation and the bullpen this year, starting 8 games and making 4 relief appearances. He hasn’t been awful, but he hasn’t been great either.
His worst start of the year came on May 9th against Lakeland when he lasted just 1 inning, giving up 6 runs on 6 hits and walking 4.
After 42.1 innings pitched, he is 0-2 with a 4.46 ERA. The ERA and record are not too concerning, but the bigger red flag is his opponents’ .292 batting average against him. His inability to miss bats and the 52 hits he’s allowed leads to more pitches and shorter outings, even if he doesn’t give up many runs.
He’ll need to start pitching deeper into the games that he starts. 4 inning starts like his last outing on June 18th won’t cut it going forward.
Trending Down: Gregori Rivero, C, Lakewood
The Phillies are set up pretty well at catcher with Jorge Alfaro behind the dish, but some of these prospects may be fighting to be his backup in years to come.
Rivero is not off to a strong start in trying to earn that role later on in his career. He is hitting .196 this year with 2 home runs and 12 RBI as of June 15th. He has a measly 6 extra base hits and has just 2 hits in his last 31 at-bats.
It won’t really affect the Phillies’ future if he pans out or not, but at the moment, he doesn’t seem to be making strides towards the big leagues.