Phillies: Rhys Hoskins out 4-6 months after undergoing TJ surgery
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins will be out of action for 4-6 months after successfully undergoing Tommy John surgery on Friday.
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins has successfully undergone Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing arm and will be out for 4-6 months.
The Phillies say Rhys Hoskins had Tommy John surgery last Friday on his non-throwing elbow. He’s out four to six months.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) October 5, 2020
This surgery follows a really successful season for Hoskins. He played in 41 games and slashed .245/.384/.503 for an OPS of .887. That OPS marks the best offensive season for Hoskins since his rookie campaign in 2017. He also made improvements to his barrel rate and strikeout rate while walking 15.7% of his at-bats.
Unfortunately, that performance wasn’t enough to will the Phillies into the expanded playoff picture. They finished the year at 28-32, just falling short of catching the Milwaukee Brewers.
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With the possibility of the playoff pool shrinking in 2021, Hoskins’ speedy recovery becomes all the more important. Even at a four-month rehab, he’ll miss out on essential offseason work to prepare for the season. At six months, he’ll likely miss out on the majority of spring training action.
And even if he can return to action, players recovering from Tommy John surgery often struggle in their return. Aaron Hicks, for example, underwent Tommy John surgery following the 2019 playoffs. He returned in time for the delayed start to 2020, but his offensive and defensive production slipped from his expected output.
The timeline for Hoskins’ recovery will play out more during the offseason. The Phillies obviously hope that he will be available to begin spring training. They’re in a position to compete in the National League East during superstar Bryce Harper‘s prime years. They’re likely going into the offseason with a focus on making drastic improvements to the bullpen.
And for Hoskins, entering his arbitration years, his availability and post-injury production will have a huge effect on his arbitration cases moving forward. It’s important for the Phillies for him to be at his best, but even more important for his future earning potential that he bounces back and continues to hit well.
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If he does, the Phillies are heading towards playoff contention and he’s heading towards a nice payday.