A Philadelphia Phillies season that hasn’t gone according to plan may have just received its dagger.
Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins told reporters on Thursday that he will undergo season-ending surgery on his lower abdomen, according to Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Phillies had already placed Hoskins on the 10-day IL earlier Thursday with a groin strain, but that was apparently just one of Hoskins’ ailments. The 28-year-old was also on the IL for 12 days earlier in the month with a groin injury.
The surgery will end a season in which Hoskins was hitting .247/.334/.530 with 27 homers in 107 games.
Are the Phillies done without Rhys Hoskins?
The 63-63 Phillies were already in dire straits, sitting five games back from the Atlanta Braves for first place in the NL East and 5.5 games back from the Cincinnati Reds for the second wild-card spot (yes, the NL East leader has a worse record than the second wild card, the division really is that bad).
Philadelphia entered the season hoping to contend in a crowded East division, and just hitting on its basic potential would have meant a trip to the playoffs. The New York Mets looked like the division’s best until falling apart in very Mets-ian fashion, the Braves don’t look nearly as strong as last season and the Washington Nationals were inundated with injuries and opted to sell.
Instead, Philadelphia is .500 with a negative run differential. Despite an MVP-contending season from Bryce Harper, the offense has been mediocre. The team’s defense and bullpen both rank among the worst in the league and only Zack Wheeler has been a consistent plus in the rotation.
And now, the team has lost a player that isn’t just one of its top sluggers, but also widely considered to be its clubhouse leader. A turnaround isn’t impossible for the Phillies, but it’s becoming increasingly hard to visualize.