Phillies need Mickey Moniak to quell centerfield disaster

Since Roman Quinn is in his fifth season in red pinstripes, the Phillies know who he is and where his value lies, excelling as a pinch-runner. While he’s never been a particularly good hitter, he’s also never been quite this bad. His inability to get on base has also rendered his biggest asset to the team utterly useless.

Adam Haseley hasn’t been much better. He’s slashed .190/.190/.238 with just four hits. He’s also been horrendous in the field — most recently misjudging a ball that was hit right to him on Tuesday night. The mistake ended up being an egregious error that helped the New York Mets throw three runs on the board and never look back, winning 4-0.

Who will play center field for the Phillies now?

The Phillies recently made a surprising move when they announced that Haseley was placed on the restricted list. When a player is placed there, they are not paid and do not accrue service time. Further, it’s a move that must be approved by the Commissioner of Major League Baseball.

I won’t speculate as to what is going on with Haseley. He deserves his privacy and hopefully fans, the team, and media give it to him. However, I do want to extend my best wishes to him and hope he comes back stronger than ever.

Filling Haseley’s spot on the 26-man roster is Mickey Moniak. The former No. 1 overall pick has largely struggled at every level of his professional career thus far. However, he recently had a terrific spring training and looked like a different player. There is no way of knowing quite yet if those results will translate into the regular season, but it is encouraging.

All eyes are now on former No. 1 overall Phillies pick Mickey Moniak.

The Phillies would love to see Mickey Moniak get going. If he plays well, he should have a genuine chance to stick with the big-league club. The opportunity to cement himself as someone who — if not worthy of that top selection back in 2016 — is at least worthy of being an everyday starter out there in center field.

As far as other options after Moniak? Well, the Phillies do have Scott Kingery, Travis Jankowski, and Odubel Herrera stashed away. However, of those three, only Kingery is actually on the 40-man roster. After an abysmal spring training, it could be some time before the team slots him back into the lineup.

Jankowski is a career .238/.315/.313 hitter who offers little upside. Herrera, meanwhile, is a PR nightmare — whose time with the team should be over. On top of that, he hasn’t had a meaningful at-bat at the pro level since 2019, when he played 39 games and slashed .222/.282/.341.

It’s early, but the dismal start for Phillies center fielders has been a major cause for concern. The Phillies shouldn’t wait until mid-summer — with them free-falling in the standings — before doing something.

With Roman Quinn faltering at the plate and Adam Haseley on the restricted list, Mickey Moniak will be given a chance to cement himself as a big-league ballplayer. If Quinn can’t get things trending in the right direction — and Moniak can’t stick in the majors — the Phillies will need to be aggressive in their pursuit of a starting-caliber center fielder.

Otherwise, their lack of stability could cost the team more games … and things could get even uglier before they get better.