On the surface, Colorado Rockies outfielder Mickey Moniak appeared to be available at the trade deadline and was drawing attention.
Behind the scenes, though, the Rockies were already negotiating a deal to keep him in town.
Moniak agreed Tuesday to a $16.25 million, two-year contract that covers 2027 and '28. He gets $7.25 million next season, which would have been his final year of arbitration eligibility, and $9 million in 2028, when he would have been eligible for free agency under the current labor contract.
Moniak has thrived at hitter friendly Coors Field since signing with Colorado in March 2025. He's hitting .277 with 18 homers and 49 RBIs across 75 games this season.
"It's no secret that I love it here," Moniak said before the Rockies faced the AL-leading Tampa Bay Rays. "Ever since I've stepped foot in Colorado and Denver and in this organization, it just felt like home."
The 28-year-old, who has a $4 million salary this year, was the No. 1 overall pick by Philadelphia in the 2016 amateur draft. He's no stranger to being dealt at the deadline with the Phillies trading him to the Los Angeles Angels in 2022.
He said that after Sunday's win over the Kansas City Royals he had a handshake agreement with the team.
“It’s a crazy process. First time I’ve ever done something like this,” Moniak said. “Just extremely happy, for sure.”
Moniak has become a leader in the clubhouse as the Rockies try to turn things around behind a new front office led by Paul DePodesta and Josh Byrnes. Colorado made several trade deadline deals for prospects Monday, sending reliever Antonio Senzatela to Milwaukee, outfielder Brenton Doyle to the Chicago White Sox and reliever Victor Vodnik to Miami.
But after some calls with teams over the last few weeks they decided it was more prudent to extend Moniak.
“We all felt like the better thing to do for us was to keep him — and not just keep him and play out the next year and a half, but really keep him,” DePodesta said. “He's very much a part of what we’re trying to be, both on the field and off the field. To be able to give him an extension is also just a message not just to the rest of our team, but hopefully to our fans and our market that we’re actually building toward something here.
“This deadline wasn’t just about trading players away. It was actually about building toward something better going forward.”
The Rockies already have more wins this season than all of last year when they went 43-119 (their third straight 100-loss season). They haven't made the playoffs since 2018.
“I truly believe in what we’re doing here,” explained Moniak, who said he and his wife are expecting a daughter. "This is a place that’s starving for winning baseball. ... To be able to bring winning baseball back to Colorado truly would mean the world.
“You see (the support) here with the records that we’ve had over the last year and a half. Can’t imagine what it’s like when we’re competing in October and further. That’s a very attainable goal for this team and the guys we have in the very near future.”
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AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum contributed.
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