The moment most Phillies fans have been waiting for has arrived: Rhys Hoskins was called up from Triple A on Thursday and will be with the Phils for tonight's home game against the New York Mets.
Hoskins has been playing left field this week at Triple A with the IronPigs. It's a position he has not played since college, but with Aaron Altherr currently injured, the Phillies see this as Hoskins' best path to immediate major-league playing time.
To make room on the roster for Hoskins, the Phillies optioned outfielder Cameron Perkins to Triple A Lehigh Valley.
Hoskins is a first baseman, but the Phillies want to give Tommy Joseph some more playing time these final seven weeks to gauge what kind of formula works best and allow Joseph to build some trade value heading into the winter.
Hoskins' bat has been major-league ready for some time. He's hit .284/.385/.581 this season with 29 home runs and 91 RBIs. This comes after a 38-homer, 116-RBI season at Double A last year.
As he's progressed through the minors, Hoskins has developed into a hitter that not only has power but also can control an at-bat. This season, he was 64 walks and 75 strikeouts.
Plate selection in the middle of the order is something the Phillies have sorely missed since ... you have to go back to Jayson Werth in 2010. That was the last season the Phillies had a player with at least 25 home runs and an on-base percentage of .350 or higher. Hoskins has a chance to do that next season, and the Phillies rightfully want to see how he handles big-league pitching over these final 51 games.
MLB
MLB.com's Todd Zolecki first reported the move.