The Phillies’ Season Hinges on Hoskins
The Philadelphia Phillies are about to embark on a 60-game sprint come July 24th.
And while the likes of Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, and Aaron Nola are poised to carry the team over the nine-week season, there’s one player who’s a success – or lack thereof – could ultimately decide the Phillies’ fate this season.
Rhys Hoskins, batting in the middle of the lineup, needs to have a strong season this year. He started off decently last season, hitting .263 with 20 home runs and 59 RBI before the All-Star break. Coincidentally, the Phillies were in first in the National League East for most of the first half of the season, when Hoskins was playing well.
When Hoskins began his decline, so too did the Phillies, with the team falling out of first on June 12th.
They would never get back there again in 2019.
How bad was Hoskins’ second half last year? He hit a paltry .180 with 9 home runs and 26 RBI. That batting average ranks him dead last out of the 145 players who had at least 225 plate appearances after the All-Star break. Hoskins looked lost at the plate. And even with Harper and Realmuto catching fire after the break, they weren’t enough to carry the Phillies. It wasn’t all on Hoskins – there were a lot of other factors that contributed to their collapse for a second straight season. But if Hoskins played like he did the first few months of the season? Maybe things would have been different.
Hoskins spent a lot of the offseason changing his batting stance and getting more comfortable at the plate. He put in work with new hitting coach Joe Dillon, all in an effort to get better for 2020. And I think fans are going to see an improved Hoskins. You listen to him talk and he sounds like a new, more confident guy.
Plus, that ‘stache has to mean he’s going to crush it this year, right? Be sure to check the results of your favorite teams regularly with a new-look time and feel to this year’s Phillies’ schedule.
Hoskins isn’t the catalyst of the team. But it could be argued he’s the heart and soul of it. He’s been around for longer than a lot of the other starters, as crazy as that is to say. He’s the team’s union representative, and he’s well-respected in the clubhouse. Remember his slow home run trot against the New York Mets last year? That’s something only a leader could get away with.
It’s no surprise then that when he struggled and was visibly frustrated by it, that the team would suffer.
Harper is going to rake this year. Realmuto, in a contract year, is going to be a stud. Andrew McCutchen, fully healthy after tearing his ACL last season, is going to set the table in the lead-off spot.
Didi Gregorius, Scott Kingery, Jean Segura, and Adam Haseley are going to be fine contributors.
But if Hoskins, who a few seasons ago was viewed as one of the centerpieces of the franchise moving forward, can’t put it together, the Phillies are going to struggle in a very tough NL East.
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