I don't think 4e outright suggests "minionizing" monsters, but there are some entries that are clearly intended that way. For example, these are the ogres from the Monster Manual:
Ogre Thug - Minion 11
Ogre Bludgeoneer - Minion 16
Ogre Savage - Brute 8
Ogre Skirmisher - Skirmisher 8
Ogre Warhulk - Elite Brute 11
The Bludgeoneer, in particular, has a description that says "Bludgeoneers typically fall under the domination of stronger and smarter monsters such as hags, oni, or giants. Left to their own devices, they simply beat enemies to death with their clubs."
If you look at the suggested encounter groups for ogres, you won't see any ogre bludgeoneers there. However, if you look under Earth Giant, you'll see a suggested 17th level group being 1 earth titan, 2 hill giants, 2 war trolls, and 4 ogre bludgeoneers.
There's a similar thing going with orcs, where the listed orcs are:
Orc drudge - Minion 4
Orc warrior - Minion 9
Orc raider - Skirmisher 3
Orc berserker - Brute 4
Orc Eye of Gruumsh - Controller (Leader) 5
Orc Bloodrager - Elite Brute 7
Orc Chieftain - Elite Brute (Leader) 8
The Orc warrior shows up both among other orcs (though usually with the higher-powered versions, not with raiders or berserkers), but they also show up as minions for creatures with more "natural" strength – such as ogres.
You see the same thing with lots of humanoids, though not with all of them (there's no higher-level minion kobold for example).
Ogre Thug - Minion 11
Ogre Bludgeoneer - Minion 16
Ogre Savage - Brute 8
Ogre Skirmisher - Skirmisher 8
Ogre Warhulk - Elite Brute 11
The Bludgeoneer, in particular, has a description that says "Bludgeoneers typically fall under the domination of stronger and smarter monsters such as hags, oni, or giants. Left to their own devices, they simply beat enemies to death with their clubs."
If you look at the suggested encounter groups for ogres, you won't see any ogre bludgeoneers there. However, if you look under Earth Giant, you'll see a suggested 17th level group being 1 earth titan, 2 hill giants, 2 war trolls, and 4 ogre bludgeoneers.
There's a similar thing going with orcs, where the listed orcs are:
Orc drudge - Minion 4
Orc warrior - Minion 9
Orc raider - Skirmisher 3
Orc berserker - Brute 4
Orc Eye of Gruumsh - Controller (Leader) 5
Orc Bloodrager - Elite Brute 7
Orc Chieftain - Elite Brute (Leader) 8
The Orc warrior shows up both among other orcs (though usually with the higher-powered versions, not with raiders or berserkers), but they also show up as minions for creatures with more "natural" strength – such as ogres.
You see the same thing with lots of humanoids, though not with all of them (there's no higher-level minion kobold for example).