Philadelphia Phillies’ first basemen Rhys Hoskins was named the National League Player of the Week for the week of July 2nd, 2022. The honor comes following a strong week out of the two-hole in which Hoskins ripped four home runs, leading the league with a 1.678 OPS on the week.
The Big Fella is currently riding a 15-game on-base streak dating back to game two of the Phillies’ doubleheader against the Washington Nationals on June 17th. During the stretch, Hoskins has owned a .304 batting average with half of his hits being of the extra-base variety. While a .630 slugging percentage is certainly intriguing over that stretch, the more interesting number to look at is Hoskins’ on-base percentage.
With 13 walks over the 15-game stretch, Hoskins’ OBP is sitting at a very desirable .450. Harking back to Hoskins’ early years, his ability to eat up pitches and get on base was a valuable asset to the Phillies, one that has deteriorated in recent years.
Under Joe Girardi, Hoskins only had two games in which he walked twice this season. Since Girardi’s departure in Hoskins has amassed multiple walks in a single game four times. This seems to indicate that Hoskins is returning to his former method at the plate, and is not simply trying to slug out home runs every time he’s up at the plate. an uptick in his ground ball percentage also indicates a change in his swing. Oh, and his home run production has nearly doubled as well, despite the increase in walks.
| Manager | GP | BB | HR | OPS |
| Joe Girardi | 50 | 22 | 8 | .704 |
| Rob Thomson | 29 | 19 | 9 | 1.112 |
Rhys Hoskins Looks to Stay Hot
Hoskins joins Kyle Schwarber, who was recently named NL Player of the Month for the month of June, as a potent one-two punch for the Phillies, keeping the offense afloat amidst the absence of Bryce Harper. As Harper briefed the media, he recently had pins put into his broken thumb, which will remain for several weeks. While Harper will return this season, there is no solid timeline as of yet.
In the meantime, Hoskins is currently second on the team in walks, home runs, and OPS while also owning the third-highest batting average among qualified players per MLB.com.
Hoskins will look to continue his uptick over the next several days as the Phillies face the Nationals. Hoskins is only batting .235 against the Nationals this season, a number he will look to rectify as he continues to stay hot.
Photo Credit: AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson
