And We're Back

Everyone I know is really jacked for the 2023 edition of the Philadelphia Phillies to finally take the field. They open the season next Thursday in Texas against the Rangers and open at home a week later against the Reds. 

But that excitement really took a hit yesterday when Rhys Hoskins went down with a torn ACL, meaning he'll be out for the season. That's a lot of right-handed production to lose from a lineup. A lot of people are sour on Hoskins because of his defensive shortcomings at first and his streakiness at the plate. 

The great Jayson Stark of The Athletic wrote that only two other first basemen have hit more homers than Hoskins since his August 2017 debut–Paul Goldschmidt and Matt Olson. Hoskins has a career OPS+ of 125, which means he's 25% better than your average big leaguer. 

So who gets the call at first? I imagine they'll go with a platoon, with Darrick Hall playing first against righties, and Alec Bohm playing first against lefties with Edmundo Sosa taking over at third. Hoskins' injury also presents an opportunity for someone like Jake Cave or Scott Kingery to make the team. The Phils could slide Nick Castellanos to DH and put Cave in right field. And Castellanos really needs to step us this season. We'll talk about him sometime soon. 

Hoskins and Jean Segura (now with Marlins) combined for 40 homers and 114 RBI last season. With Trea Turner (21 HR, 100 RBI last year) replacing Segura in the lineup, he and Hall should be able to equal if not surpass that offensive output. 

Hoskins will be missed most in the clubhouse. He's a solid dude, his teammates love him, and he's the longest tenured position player on the team. He's also one of the leaders of the team, and his work in the community is absolutely legendary. But the injury couldn't come at a worse time for him. He's a free agent at the end of the season and his knee is going to cost him tens millions of dollars. If the Hall-Bohm platoon doesn't work out or if Dave Dombrowski can't swing a trade for a first baseman, I can see a healthy Hoskins returning in 2024 on a one-year deal. 

This was originally going to be my annual prediction post, but Rhys' injury takes precedence. Last season, I predicted 88 wins and a wild-card berth. I absolutely did not see that World Series run coming. But here goes. I expect this team to be better than last year, even without Hoskins. Ranger Suarez forearm issues are a concern, but I still think this team has enough talent to win 93 games this season and make another playoff run.

Ring the damn bell.