Rhys Hoskins refuses to let Philadelphia Phillies flop again

That creeping sense of doom inside the soul of so many Philadelphia Phillies fans was eased (at least for one night) by Rhys Hoskins on Friday night with a memorable performance against the Atlanta Braves.

Rhys Hoskins put the Philadelphia Phillies on his back on Friday night against the Atlanta Braves

Hoskins went 3-for-4 and drove in four runs as the Philadelphia Phillies planted a 9-1 loss on the Braves at Citizens Bank Park. Included in his total was his 30th double and 29th home run of the season, both coming off Atlanta’s Jake Odorizzi.

The win was the third straight for the Phillies, who are just 5-5 over their last 10 games as they try to keep their postseason hopes alive as the fifth seed in the National League playoff standings. The Phillies are a half-game ahead of the San Diego Padres, currently sitting as the sixth seed, and 2.5 games ahead of the Milwaukee Brewers, a team trying to rally in the season’s final games to earn a spot in the postseason.

While Hoskins had a big night at the plate, he may well have had one of the best defensive plays of the season at first base as well.

Hoskins was certainly checking his pulse after making that play, just like Phillies fans have been checking theirs throughout September as talk of a potential collapse has grown from a whisper to a soft roar around the City of Brotherly Love. However, Friday’s win puts the Phillies back above the .500 mark for the month (10-9 in September).

Philadelphia and Atlanta play two more times this weekend, plus the Phillies finish the year with three games in Houston against the Astros. With a 92.6 percent chance to make the postseason per FanGraphs, things are looking good for Philadelphia, even with a few tough games left in the season.