FanPost

The Rhys Hoskins Conundrum

What an awful month for the beloved Phillies.. And it’s only May 19th. The schedule in April and early May was absolutely brutal, but does it really get any better? After playing the Nationals and "Phillies Killer" Bryce Harper a whopping 12 times since the beginning of the season, it looked like some opponent relief was on the way. WRONG. The Phillies run into the red hot Rangers who have won 9 straight and get swept while playing arguably the worst baseball they have all year. The bullpen can’t get an out and Mackanin left Joely Rodriguez in after he was hit harder than 2007-2008 Adam Eaton. Where’s Wilson Valdez when you need him? An upcoming series against the middling pirates could help the confidence of this team, but the Pirates have won two straight games and at this point it looks like they will be making it five straight by the time Monday rolls around.

With all of that being said it leads me to this: Rhys Hoskins is RED HOT and doesn’t seem to be slowing down. Why not call him up while he is hitting the crap out of the ball? The Phillies have a record of 3-15 in the month of May. I know there are some fans who agree and some fans who think he should stay down and continue working at AAA and I get it. You don’t want him to be rushed up to the Majors and hurt his confidence and his swing. At some point enough is enough. At some point you need to see what he can do at the big league level, and why not make it against the upcoming schedule which middle of the road starting pitching. The next six opponents are the Pirates, Rockies, Reds, Marlins, Giants and the Braves. The only above average team in that stretch is the Rockies who are currently 26-16 and due for regression. The way that Rhys Hoskins is hitting the ball right now, you need to find a way to get him in the lineup. He is currently hitting .343 with 12 homeruns, 9 doubles and an OPS of 1.139. He has 21 walks and 26 strikeouts, which would rank 26th in the Major Leagues (One would have to assume strikeouts would go up slightly at a higher level). I’d be willing to look past that if he posts numbers that is he posts a line that is anything close to his last season and a half.

Let’s look at the other side of this.

A Valid point can be made that hitting isn’t the issue. It’s the starters not lasting past the 5th inning, the bullpen not being able to get anyone out and these things are true. No matter what the hitters do if the bullpen cannot hold a lead and the starters do not give you time to get a lead in the first place you’re going to have a bad time. The quicker you fall into a hole, the more the hitters have to press to make something happen. When hitters press their head goes off the ball, their hips fly open and they don’t make quality swings on quality pitches. Not only does bad pitching handcuff your ability to win games, it makes the hitters worse as well. Hoskins is obviously comfortable in the minors and the way the Iron pigs score runs he is able to wait for his pitch a drive it to any part of the field. If he gets called up, he may start pressing not only because the team will not have leads but because he wants to prove himself. These are all real concerns.

If the Phillies continue to lose changes will be made and this could include call ups. Hoskins should be one of the first to get his shot. He’s earned it, and Phillies fans should be excited for what he can bring to the table.

Until Next Time