Phillies Tab Moniak On Draft’s First Day

A spring of uncertainty ended Thursday when commissioner Rob Manfred stepped to the podium in Studio 42 in Secaucus, N.J., and announced the Phillies had selected California prep outfielder Mickey Moniak with the first overall pick.

Moniak, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound outfielder from La Costa Canyon High in Carlsbad, Calif., had been connected to the Philles for a few weeks. And, at the end, Phillies scouting director Johnny Almaraz had Monaik at the top of the board.

“He was No. 1 on my list,” Almaraz said at a press conference in Philadelphia. “He was the best player in the country.”

Thursday was the start of a big weekend for Moniak. He will graduate from high school Friday and is eager to get started on the next stage of his life.

“I’m just ready to get the professional career started and hopefully get up to Philadelphia as fast as I fan,” Moniak said.

This was the first year the Phillies had the first overall pick since 1998, when they selected Pat Burrell. Moniak is the first high school outfielder to go No. 1 since the Rays made Delmon Young the top overall pick in 2003. In all, eight prep outfielders have been the first overall pick.

Moniak knows there will be some added pressure that comes with being the No. 1 draft pick. But he is prepared to handle the scrutiny.

“The main thing about baseball and the main thing that I look to do when I play the game is that you can’t put too much pressure on yourself,” Moniak said. “Once you’re in between the lines, the main thing is going out and winning the ballgame. That’s all you’ve got to focus on. You can’t focus on the stuff off the field and outside the field. It can take a backseat for nine innings. Focusing on the game definitely helps take away that added pressure. And focusing on winning first and foremost is definitely the main thing.”

Following Moniak off the board Thursday was Tennessee third baseman Nick Senzel, who went second overall to the Reds. The top-ranked prospect in the Cape Cod League last summer, Senzel established himself as the best college hitter in the draft and was rewarded Thursday.

Senzel heard his name called early in the night, but still found the wait to be interminable.

“I tried to make it as simple as possible and keep myself occupied as much as possible,” Senzel said. “Today felt like a long one. It felt like during each pick that four minutes going by felt like the longest four minutes of my entire life. It’s been a great week and I’m very, very honored and blessed to be in the position I’m in.”

Prep pitchers Ian Anderson and Riley Pint, and Louisville outfielder Corey Ray rounded out the top five.

The Athletics selected Florida lefthander A.J. Puk, the top player on the BA 500, with the sixth overall pick. He was the first of five Florida players to be drafted in the draft’s first day, which lasted 77 picks. Teammates Dane Dunning (29), Logan Shore (47), Buddy Reed (48) and Peter Alonso (64) followed.

Florida had the most players drafted of any school Thursday, but Louisville came close to matching the Gators with four players selected. Ray went fifth overall to the Brewers, followed by Zach Burdi (26), Will Smith (32) and Nick Solak (62). Notably absent was righthander Kyle Funkhouser, who was selected 35th overall last year, but returned to school for his senior year and saw his stock dip. He is one of the top players available going into the draft’s second day.

One of the biggest stories on draft day was the slide of New Jersey prep lefthander Jason Groome, who had at one point been considered the top player in the class. He slipped to No. 12, where the Red Sox grabbed the high upside lefty.

Puerto Rican prep shortstop Delvin Perez also fell on draft night after testing positive for a performance enhancing drug in MLB’s predraft screening. Ranked No. 8 on the BA 500, Perez lasted until No. 23, where the Cardinals drafted him. The Cardinals, who picked four times Thursday, were also waiting to grab falling college righthanders Dakota Hudson at No. 34 and Connor Jones at No. 70.

The Padres drafted five times Thursday and provided some surprises with their first two picks. They drafted Stanford righthander Cal Quantrill with the eighth overall pick and Texas prep shortstop Hudson Sanchez at No. 24, then snagging Kent State lefthander Eric Lauer a pick later. In the second round, they picked Reed and then finished the night with California prep righthander Reggie Lawson in the Competitive Balance Lottery B.

Quantrill was a Preseason All-American, but was sidelined all year as he recovered from Tommy John surgery. Sanchez ranked No. 28 on the BA 500 and was perhaps the most surprising first rounder.

The draft resumes Friday at 1 p.m. ET with rounds 3-10. Five players from the top 50 of the BA 500 remain undrafted, led by California prep righthander Jared Horn (32).