Phillies Slugger Rhys Hoskins Looks Like A Legitimate MLB Superstar

Who is really the best player in baseball? Mike Trout (many will say you can stop right there) and Bryce Harper should be towards the top of any list, Clayton Kershaw deserves consideration despite not being a position player, and some people will say Jose Altuve after Houston won the World Series last fall. That’s about it in my opinion, though.

 

Sure, there are loyal fans that will vouch for Joey Votto or Manny Machado or Max Scherzer (among others), but it’s difficult to say with a straight face that they are the best player in the game, especially with Trout and Harper both in their prime. However, a 25-year-old playing in Philadelphia could be joining the party soon.

 

Rhys Hoskins took the league by storm last year when he was called up in August and then literally breaking records almost every night, and he finished the season with 50 MLB games under his belt. He crushed 18 home runs and accumulated 48 RBI over that span, which would have been 54 HR and 144 RBI over 150 games. He also hit .259 with an on-base percentage of .396 and an OPS of 1.014 last year.

 

For comparison, last year’s NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton played 159 games and hit .281 with 59 HR, 132 RBI, a .376 OBP, and an OPS on 1.007. Of course, Hoskins stats are extrapolated, but if this year’s start is any indication, then it’s fair to assume “Rhys Lightning” will continue lighting up the skies in a ballpark near you.

 

Through nine games, Hoskins is 12-for-28 (.429) with 2 home runs, 9 RBI, 7 runs, 8 walks, an OBP of .553, a slugging percentage of .821, and an astronomical OPS of 1.374. Those numbers are good enough to give him the MLB lead in AVG and OBP, and the SLG and OPS are trailing only Bryce Harper and Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius.

 

Plus, Hoskins is not only being more aggressive on the bases—his two steals already match last season’s total—but he’s also playing left field and exceling there after the team signed Carlos Santana to play first base in the winter. New manager Gabe Kapler is going to mix-and-match the lineup all season (or until something clicks), but a constant for Philly for 162 games should be Hoskins’ name penned in as the clean-up hitter.

 

Heck, they should engrave his name into the lineup card and go from there. If Hoskins stays healthy, there’s no reason he won’t surpass last season’s MVP-worthy pace.

 

I think that would be enough to mention him in the same breath as some of the game’s best. And the baseballs he has and will continue to punish would likely agree.