Rockies’ Moniak Sheds ‘Late Bloomer’ Tag After Years of Struggle

Although the 2026 MLB season is still young, Colorado Rockies’ outfielder Mickey Moniak finally seems to be living up to the expectations of 11 years ago, when, as a high schooler, he was the No. 1 overall MLB Draft selection.

There is no backyard barbecue planned for this Memorial Day weekend. Moniak, who is being plugged into all three outfield positions so far this season by Rockies’ manager Warren Schaeffer, and his 25 teammates are in the midst of a four-game series on the road in Phoenix with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Moniak has appeared in 43 of the Rockies 51 games prior to Friday evening’s matchup, but you won’t find any carping coming from the second-season Colorado slugger about the team being scheduled for 16 consecutive days of play. Indeed, feeling wanted, playing regularly, and producing at the plate, as Moniak is doing in 2026, may have seemed improbable not too long ago.

The No. 1 overall pick in 2016 of the MLB Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies, as an 18-year-old completing his high school baseball days in Carlsbad, California, Moniak’s future appeared to be as bright as any amateur observed by scouts in previous decades. Then, a slow road of mediocracy, dictated by injuries, underwhelming performances on the field, and a pandemic, stifled the once projected linear route to MLB stardom. Having passed on a previous commitment to attend UCLA and play for the Bruins’ collegiate baseball program, Moniak took the money, a reported $6,100,000 signing bonus, and traded his remaining teen years for life with adults as a professional.

“I was 17 years old when I was drafted. Graduated on a Thursday from high school, and on Sunday I was in Bradenton, Florida, at the Pittsburgh Pirates camp,” former MLB All-Star catcher Jason Kendall told The Epoch Times during a phone conversation on Thursday.

“It’s a big step, going from high school to the demands of being a pro. You’re still not mature. You have to learn how to do your laundry, and other everyday things. You notice real quick that everyone’s just as good as you.”

Kendall, who toured Pittsburgh’s minor league system for four seasons before getting the call-up to the Pirates and beginning an uninterrupted 15-year MLB career, sympathizes with the delay of Moniak’s finding his way to an everyday player’s role in the big leagues. Like Moniak, Kendall, too, was prepared for Division I college baseball (San Diego State) prior to being a top draft pick in 1992 by Pittsburgh. Skipping opportunities to participate in both the baseball and football programs at San Diego State, Kendall wanted the quick route to playing ball every day. He cites having a caring support system with his parents as a major reason for getting past the growing pains of a minor leaguer.

Moniak, to get where he is today with the Rockies—where he experienced career-highs in 2025 in games played, home runs, triples, hits, and RBIs in his first year in Colorado—is an ongoing transformation worthy of applause. A half dozen stints in the minors in such learning hot spots as Lakewood, New Jersey, and Salt Lake City, Moniak’s “growing pains” experienced off baseball’s beaten path continue to pay dividends in 2026. So far, 150 at-bats brings a .280 average, a .942 OPS, 12 home runs, and 28 RBIs. The Rockies, equal partners in Moniak’s “coming of age,” have to be thrilled with getting his services for this season at an MLB bargain salary of $4 million agreed upon in January.

The right organization, at the right time, and a coaching staff that adapts to a player’s strengths usually get a premium performance from their personnel. Kendall agrees that a Colorado experience for Moniak was what the Rockies’ regular outfielder needed all along, as this is an avenue that he traveled and benefited from in his career.

“I was asked to make changes in my game my first season in Bradenton. How you adjust is key to your success. Your mental approach is so important. Some catch on quicker than others. There will be many ups and downs each season. The game can be very difficult at times, and it only speeds up with each level you climb.”

The 47 games played for the Phillies and 228 games with the Los Angeles Angels, in retrospect, were a warm-up for Moniak’s arrival in Denver in 2025, after 9 previous seasons of perfecting his skills. Could it be the Rockies new hitting coach Brett Pill making the difference in Moniak’s plate appearances? Was a change of scenery—from Southern California to the Rocky Mountains and its thin air—all that it took for Moniak to be an every-game menace to opposing pitchers? It could be just as simple as his baseball prowess finally clicking, and now Moniak is creating baseball history, one swing at a time.

“I really didn’t care about the money. I really didn’t,” Kendall said of his receiving a $336,000 signing bonus as a teenager. “I ate, slept, and breathed baseball. Mentally, I was obsessed with making it to the next level.”

Now, it’s the Rockies’ fans who are obsessing over their new favorite baseball hero. McKenzie Matthew Moniak isn’t how the MLB fanbase knows the game’s budding headliner. It’s Mickey they’re cheering for. Better late than never, Moniak is quickly becoming the feel-good story of Colorado baseball, and beyond.