A new era in Phillies baseball has officially begun
Unless you are a die-hard Phillies fan, many of you have checked out from watching baseball in the city of Philadelphia. They have not been over .500 since the month of April and currently have the least amount of wins in the entire league.
With all that being said, the remainder of the season will be must watch television.
Back on June 30, the Phillies began making news when they called up outfielder Nick Williams. In 60 games, Williams has posted a .333 on-base percentage and has been a staple in the middle of the lineup. The success from Williams at the big league level proved to the organization that they could begin calling up the other highly touted prospects.
Philadelphia Phillies
On August 10, General Manager Matt Klentak decided that it was time for Rhys Hoskins to make his major league debut after hitting 29 home runs for the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. Things have not slowed down for the future first baseman and his offensive numbers.
In just 27 games, Hoskins has hit 12 home runs and posted an eye-popping .309 batting average. Both Williams and Hoskins made it easy for the Klentak to make arguably the biggest decision of the season; the call up of J.P. Crawford.
With Maikel Franco struggling offensively, the franchise deemed it necessary to work J.P. Crawford at 3rd base and not just his natural position of shortstop. Since being called up, Crawford has played both games at the hot corner while posting a .143 batting average. His offensive numbers are not there yet, but he had a slow start at each level throughout his career.
Tuesday night, fans were able to see Nick Williams, Rhys Hoskins, catcher Jorge Alfaro, and J.P. Crawford in the lineup together at the major league level. Seeing the four of them together is what will be the draw for fans the remainder of the season. The team will continue to struggle, but seeing the future on the field playing at the same time should be enough.
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There are still pieces in the minor leagues that fans should be excited and eager to see. The lineup that we hope will take the Phillies into the playoffs once again is still not full. There will be free agents, trades and more call ups to come.
It has been mentioned before and it will be mentioned again; this season was about development, and the Phillies proved that they have players that are ready for the long run.