Message to injured Mickey Moniak: Stick around Phillies and ‘be a part of it’

Mickey Moniak held up his right hand Thursday to show the Phillies’ athletic trainers how it looked one day after getting hit by a pitch in his final spring-training at-bat. The back of his hand was swollen. But it was the bruising on his palm that set off alarms.

“That’s when the trainers were suspicious,” Moniak said.

The Phillies ordered a CT scan, which revealed a hairline fracture of Moniak’s fifth metacarpal on his throwing hand and scuttled what would have been an opening-day start in center field Friday at Citizens Bank Park. Instead, Moniak will be sidelined for four to six weeks.

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“It’s tough,” Moniak said before the Phillies’ 140th season opener. “Having that happen the last game of the spring, it’s something you never hope for. Definitely took some time to process it, take a step back, and let the emotions flow through, and woke up today and move forward and try to figure out what I need to do to get this hand right.”

Moniak, now wearing a splint over his ring and pinky fingers, was a long shot to make the team when spring training opened last month. But he took quickly to new hitting coach Kevin Long’s suggestion to move closer to the plate and change the direction of his stride. Then he took advantage of an opportunity when center fielder Odúbel Herrera strained a muscle in his side. Moniak went 13-for-35 (.371) with four doubles and five homers and forced his way onto the roster.

Manager Joe Girardi, who had planned to remove Moniak from the spring training finale after the fateful fourth-inning at-bat, said he’s “heartbroken for him.” Several of Moniak’s teammates expressed a similar sentiment.

“It’s very unfortunate, no doubt,” Nick Castellanos said. “What I told him is that, even though he’s on the IL, I think it’s it’s important for him to travel with us. He’s had such a good spring. This unfortunate accident, I wouldn’t want him to feel disconnected. So my message to him was, ‘Hey man, travel with us. Be a part of it.’”

Moniak intends to do exactly that. He shagged fly balls in the outfield during batting practice Friday and said he’s hoping doctors will clear him to resume throwing in a few weeks.

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Herrera is scheduled to play in an extended spring training game Saturday but will need “a couple weeks at least,” according to Girardi, before he’s ready to join the Phillies. Until then, Matt Vierling figures to get most of the playing time in center field.

The Phillies did call up 23-year-old outfield prospect Símon Muzziotti, who was slated to open the season in double A. Muzziotti said he was in the team’s hotel in Reading on Thursday when assistant general manager Jorge Velandia called to tell him the Phillies were promoting him.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Muzziotti said through a team translator. “I was like, ‘Is this for real? Are they really calling me up?’ My mom couldn’t believe it, and my dad just started screaming.”

Muzziotti, a left-handed hitter, will get a few starts against right-handed pitching, Girardi said. More than anything, Muzziotti needs to play a lot this year. Between the cancellation of the minor-league season in 2020 and issues with obtaining a work visa last year, he has gotten only 83 plate appearances since 2019.

Meanwhile, Moniak believes he will be able to pick up where he left off in spring training, as long as he gets another opportunity.

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“Spring training was just a foundation for me in knowing what I can do as a baseball player,” Moniak said. “Four to six weeks is not ideal, but it’s all up here [in his head]. Right now it’s about getting this healed up, however long it takes, do not rush it, and make sure I’m good to go when it’s time.”

Many Phillies players and staff wore T-shirts around the clubhouse that read, “I don’t have a college degree; I hit baseballs,” Castellanos’ memorable quote from his introductory news conference. Castellanos said Long was responsible for having the shirts made.

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“I think it describes a lot of the personalities in this clubhouse,” Castellanos said. “We’re a bunch of kids who get to play baseball. A lot of us in this clubhouse don’t have a college degree, but we’re good baseball players.”

Castellanos was the designated hitter in his Phillies debut.

The opening-day batting order featured J.T. Realmuto in the No. 2 spot, a move that Girardi said was designed to take advantage of the catcher’s speed.

Girardi said Jean Segura likely will bat second when Realmuto isn’t in the lineup. Segura batted seventh in the opener against A’s right-hander Frankie Montas. When the Phillies face a lefty, Girardi said Segura could move up to the No. 6 spot ahead of lefty-hitting Didi Gregorius.

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Zack Wheeler topped 50 pitches in four innings Thursday in an intrasquad game in Clearwater, Fla. He’s on track to make his first start of the season Tuesday night at home against the New York Mets. ... In a grand finale to the pregame ceremonies, the Phanatic parachuted into Citizens Bank Park. ... Dan Baker, celebrating his 50th season as the Phillies’ public-address announcer, threw a ceremonial first pitch. ... Kyle Gibson will start Saturday against A’s left-hander Cole Irvin, the former Phillies prospect.