In last night’s 15-10 route of the Chicago Cubs, Rhys Hoskins went 3-for-5 with a home run, two doubles and four RBI. Over the last four games, the Phillies’ first baseman is now 8-for-14 with three home runs, four doubles, and nine RBI. On his recent surge, Hoskins has now raised his slash line to .236/.313/.492 on the season. He has 20 home runs, 53 RBI, and 45 runs scored in 83 games this year.

It’s also true that over his last 30 games, Hoskins has a batting average of just .188. The hot and cold streaks can certainly be glaring. He’s battled through an 0-for-53 skid and most recently an 0-for-23 skid. Still, the Phillies will send their ace in Zack Wheeler to the mound tonight against a struggling Cubs team with hopes to get back to .500 for the first time since early June. They are currently four games back of the NL East leading New York Mets and have two games left in Chicago before closing out the first half of the season against the Red Sox in Boston.

Rhys Hoskins signed a one year $4.8 million contract with the Phillies before the start of the 2021 season in his first year from arbitration. He will have two more years of arbitration eligibility before becoming a free agent in 2024. It’s hard to believe that the Phillies are still in position to win the National League East after an up-and-down first half of the season, but they certainly are. It’s also unfair to hype up the Phillies after a few good games against a miserable Cubs team. However, with the trade deadline approaching on July 30th, the Phillies are currently in a position to be buyers and not sellers.

Rumors have floated around that the Phillies would look to shop Rhys Hoskins and veteran Andrew McCutchen, however both players are atop of every tracked offensive statistic for the Phillies. There’s no way the Phillies can move either player while in contention given their offensive production. There was a strong case (made by me) that Hoskins should have been an All-Star.

Rhys Hoskins Rankings at First Base in the National League:

• Runs (45) 3RD
• Hits (74) 3RD
• Doubles (20) 1ST
• Home Runs (20) 1ST
• RBI (53) 2ND
• Walks (32) 3RD
• Slugging (.492) 2ND
• OPS (.805) 5TH

Bryce Harper said after last night’s game, the All-Star game doesn’t really concern him and he probably wouldn’t have attended anyways. JT Realmtuo and Zack Wheeler will both head to Denver next week. Hoskins won’t but easily could have if he was voted in by the players and coaches in the MLB. He’s slightly behind pace to have a 40 home run, 40 double pace with over 100 RBI on the year.

Read back at any article written about the Phillies and Rhys Hoskins on The Liberty Line. One Rhys Hoskins goes, so do the Phillies.

Last year during the COVID shortened MLB season, the Phillies were 8-2 when Hoskins hit a home run, and 11-4 when Hoskins had at least one RBI. The team was also 6-14 when Hoskins did not play, showing his importance to this Phillies team. In Phillies wins, Hoskins went .262/.398/.607/1.005. In Phillies losses, he sat at .224/.366/.373/.739. Rhys Hoskins has a huge impact on the Phillies, especially when they’re winning.

With Bryce Harper and JT Realmuto in the lineup, it’s easy to overlook Rhys Hoskins but in my opinion he is the most crucial player in the lineup for the Phillies in the second half of the season.

The journey to get back above the Mason Dixon line in the National League standings continues tonight with Zack Wheeler. The Phillies offense has awoken and in the heart of the lineup, sits Rhys Hoskins. Often overlooked and criticized, there’s absolutely no doubt that he is the key to success for the Phillies in the second half this season.

Mandatory Credit: AP Sports | USA Today