What a difference two years makes.
At the beginning of March of 2023, Rhys Hoskins entered Spring training as a Philadelphia Phillie with all the momentum of a World Series run and postseason-defining bat spike behind him. By the end of it, he’d suffered a season-ending ACL injury lunging to field a ground ball behind first base.
Now, a year into his $36 million, two-year contract with the Milwaukee Brewers and having recently exercised an option worth $18 million to remain in Milwaukee throughout 2025, Hoskins is facing, if not career-defining, perhaps a career-deciding season. He’ll want to prove his worth to the Brewers or at least buoy his market value.
Key to this will be to shake off the hamstring injury and hitting slumps that derailed Hoskins in 2024. If he can do it, this could be the season we see Rhys Hoskins returning to something like form. He’ll need to convince fans to get behind him too. After last season’s performance, and despite the team becoming NL Central Division champs, Brewers fans haven’t fully bought in yet.
It’s also not exactly obvious what form means for Hoskins. While in Philadelphia, he infuriated and excited fans in equal measure. Excited, when everything was clicking at the plate, infuriated, almost every time he took the field at first base.
Hoskins is not a natural first baseman. Even the most routine balls will find a way to circumvent him. He may be best suited as a Designated Hitter or, as he did last year, pinch-hitting for Christian Yelich who is due to return in 2025 after undergoing back surgery last summer.
In his first season as a Brewer, Hoskins hit 26 home runs, 25 of those counting for at least two. His only solo shot came in September against his former club. This is worth noting because back in Philadelphia, when the sluggers aren’t busy chasing phantom balls outside the zone, they’re not putting up comparable numbers.
Last year Kyle Schwarber blasted 38 balls into the stands, 37 of which were solo home runs. Trea Turner hit 21, 15 of them solo.
In the days before Pete Alonso was a lock to return to the New York Mets, there were two hours of hypothetical rumblings online that the Mets could consider offering a trade for Hoskins should Alonso walk.
This was never going to happen but it might not have been such a terrible move for New York if it had. It’s just that the level of animosity between Hoskins and the Mets would surely have made it impossible for everyone involved. At some point in the season, we would have to watch the Mets bench clear to turn on one of their own, and while I’m not completely opposed to that idea, I’d much rather see a 2025 bounce-back year for Rhys Hoskins in Milwaukee.
Featured image Credit: Norm Hall, via Getty Images
TOM BAKER is the Philadelphia Phillies correspondent for Bat Flips and Nerds. You can read more of his articles here and follow him on Bluesky @lawsonbaker.bsky.social
