It feels like ages ago that Rhys Hoskins slammed his bat down in excitement after blasting a three-run homer for the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3 of the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves in the 2022 postseason.
That’s what an injury does.
Athletes who were once directly in the spotlight are now moved to the backburner as teams have to move on in their absence.
The Phillies had to do that when Hoskins went down with a torn ACL in Spring Training. They had no choice after signing Trea Turner to a massive contract and expecting to get back to the World Series.
With Hoskins out, Bryce Harper eventually took over at first base and played to such a level that Philadelphia’s front office and coaching staff feels comfortable enough to have him play there full-time for the foreseeable future.
So, they let their slugging first baseman walk in free agency.
Hoskins will likely be playing his first year of Major League Baseball with a different organization than the one that drafted him back in 2014.
First baseman Rhys Hoskins is a free agent, and the Chicago Cubs are in negotiations with agent Scott Boras about signing him,” he reports.
The slugger would be well advised to go here. The Chicago Cubs, who lost out on Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto and haven’t re-signed Cody Bellinger, are in desperate need of extra power.
