One year ago today the baseball world was introduced to Rhys Hoskins. Now we look back at how the Phillies slugger has done so far, and what the future holds.
One year ago on this exact date, the New York Mets came to Philadelphia to take on the then 42-69 last-place Phillies. It was the start of a four-game series (the Phils would lose three of four) and the Phillies were crawling their way to the finish line. The opener was horrific. Vince Velasquez lasted just one inning and the team was blown out 10-0.
The only silver lining was the debut of Rhys Hoskins, except things did not start too pretty for Hoskins either. After going 0-for-2 with a strikeout and a walk in his debut, Hoskins wrapped up the four game home stand an unpromising 1-for-13, striking out four times and leaving 12 men on base.
California Rhys was a whole different story. In a seven-game stretch against the Padres and Giants, Hoskins batted .320 while smashing the first five home runs of his career, driving in eight runs, all while striking out just three times in 25 at-bats.
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Hoskins wrapped up a historic August with a .304/.402/.747 slash line and hit 11 home runs in just 22 games, becoming the quickest hitter in MLB history to launch 10 homers and winning NL August Rookie of the Month during the span.
Hoskins’ numbers did decline over the last month of the season as he wrapped his 50 games in 2017 with 18 home runs, 48 RBI, and a slash of .259/.396/.618. Despite that, he had finally given hope to the baseball fans of Philadelphia.
Hoskins has had an up and down 2018. He was utterly on fire in April before a horrendous May slump. He is currently in the midst of his second month hitting below .200, yet was phenomenal during June and July, batting .291 with 15 home runs and 42 RBI. Hoskins has been able to maintain a very good .371 OBP to go alongside his .257 batting average.
Looking over Hoskin’s first year as the face of Phillies baseball his numbers are very impressive. The young slugger has yet to tally up enough games to add up to a full MLB season. In his 155 major-league games, Hoskins has smashed 40 home runs, driven in 120 runs, scored 101 runs, knocked 142 hits, and has an impressive .379 OBP. He has already been worth 3.1 wins above replacement in his career.
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Since his debut, Hoskins has the 12th most home runs, fifth-most RBI, and the seventh highest walk percentage among all players. He also is tied for sixth for most multi-walk games (24) through a batter’s first 155 games. The five batters above him are Bernie Carbo, Frank Thomas, Adam Dunn, Max Bishop and Ted Williams.
Despite his inconsistencies, Hoskins remains an elite hitter. This season Hoskins ranks top 20 in the National League in home runs (11th), RBI (7th), runs scored (18th), on-base percentage (14th), slugging percentage (12th), OPS (13th), doubles (seventh), and walks (eighth). The only other hitters in the top 20 in said categories are Matt Carpenter and Nolan Arenado.
Most importantly, Hoskins is one of the major pieces that have made the Phillies a winning ball club. He is one of the best young hitters in the game and has led his team to a first place spot in the division with just 48 games remaining. No NL team with 88 wins or more has missed the Playoffs since the birth of the second NL Wild Card.
Hoskins has been fantastic through the first year of his career. He has brought hope and a winning culture to a team city once deprived of successful baseball. He has already established himself as an elite young hitter in todays game, and the future is only brighter.