Phillies' Mickey Moniak: Optioned to minors

Moniak was optioned off the Phillies' active roster Monday.

The Phillies had little reason not to give Moniak a brief audition in center field given the poor performances by the team's other options and the fact that the minor-league season hasn't started yet. He did very little with his opportunity, hitting .120/.214/.240 in nine games while striking out in 42.9 percent of his plate appearances. With the minor leagues starting soon, he'll get the chance to play every day at the Triple-A level, with Odubel Herrera getting the call to try to hold down the starting job in center.