The Phils won last night, 7-1 over the world champion Chicago Cubs. Rookie Rhys Hoskins homered again, his 9th home run in only 16 games, the fastest that any player in MLB history has hit nine homers at the beginning of their career.
Think about it: Faster than Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays or Hank Aaron. Faster than Mike Trout. Faster than anybody!
Pitchers will adjust as the league gets a book on Hoskins. Hopefully Hoskins adjusts with them. He looks like too good of a hitter not to.
The impact of a Rhys Hoskins is immeasurable for a struggling Phillies franchise. They badly needed a face to the franchise, not only someone to build around, a young, future star who has power, but someone thye can market, important on and off the field.
Hoskins give the long-suffering fans something to watch. He gives them hope for the future,a reason to attend games for the rest of the season and watch the ballgames in September.
On the field, Hoskins brings energy and youth. He makes the line-up better, allowing the hitters around him to see more fastballs. Hoskins walks as well as hits home runs. He is hitting for average too. Hopefully other younger players, like Mychal Franco, take note and learn.
He has also made other players step up their game by pushing them, namely Tommy Joseph. An outfield rotation of Hoskins, Herrera, Altherr and Williams is solid, but Phillies management has already said the Hoskins is their first baseman of the future, not their left fielder.
Off the field, having the presence of Hoskins in the line-up will encourage free agents ( Manny Machado) to consider coming to the Phillies .Stopping into the Phillies Clubhouse store recently, a white and red- pinstriped Phillies home jersey is displayed prominently in the front of the store. Imagine how many jerseys will be sold. Hoskins will entice fans to buy season tickets for 2018. The 2018 Phillies calendar won't need to use photos of the Phanatic or sunset over Citizens Bank park anymore. Hoskins will be all over the yearbook and programs next season.
So, there is hope, thanks in large part to Hoskins. He is the savior so far, someone to lead the team out of the darkness of a bleak, losing season and into the sunlight of contention down the road.
* Now that Hoskins has opened eyes, especially in the front office, hopefully more young players will get a chance in September and beyond. Outfielder Dylan Cousins should get a shot soon. True, he stills trikes-out a ton and his average is hovering around .220. But he has hit 26 homers in Lehigh Valley. He is young with potential. Why not give him a shot, especially since the games really don't matter anymore. Reunite the "Bash Brothers" and see what happens!
Scott Kingery played third base last night for the Iron Pigs. He extended his hitting streak to 23 games with a double in the ninth inning. 23 games breaks the old Lehigh Valley franchise record by no other than Dominick Brown.
Kingery should be promoted but won't. The Phils will consider his service time and the soonest we will see Kingery is next spring training. Hopefully he forces the organization's hand If Franco doesn't shape up, is it possible that the Phillies keep Cesar Hernandez and Kingery takes over third?
With much-needed pitching help, the Phillies could field a young, exciting squad next spring. They may not contend again, but certainly improvement should be expected, and the fans should have more fun watching the Phils in 2018.
* I'm attending the Phillies-Cubs game tonight. I'll post my review of the game tomorrow on what should be a beautiful nigh tin South Philly.
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