Brewers Add Much-Needed Thump With Rhys Hoskins Signing
Following weeks of rumours and speculation, the free-agent designated hitter market has finally begun to move, as one of the biggest dominoes fell late Tuesday night.
Rhys Hoskins and the Milwaukee Brewers are nearing an agreement on a two-year, $34-million contract that’ll include an opt-out clause after the first season, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Once the deal becomes finalized, pending a physical, it’ll pay the 30-year-old first baseman $17 million in 2024 and another $17 million in ‘25 if he fulfills the second year of the contract.
Hoskins missed the entire 2023 campaign after tearing the ACL in his left knee during spring training. After months of recovery, the veteran righty attempted to return during the Philadelphia Phillies’ playoff run last fall and, according to reports, might have been available if they advanced to the World Series for a second straight year.
Unfortunately, the 6-foot-4 slugger was forced to watch from the sidelines as the Phillies fell in seven games to the Arizona Diamondbacks during the NLCS.
Coming off a lost season due to injury, Hoskins almost landed the same deal as San Francisco’s Michael Conforto, who missed all of 2022 due to shoulder surgery before inking a two-year deal worth $36 million last winter. Interestingly, both players are clients of Scott Boras’ agency.
The Sacramento, CA native was selected by the Phillies in the fifth round of the 2014 draft and had spent his entire career in the “City of Brotherly Love.” He made his MLB debut in 2017, blasting 18 home runs with 48 RBIs over his first 50 games as a rookie.
Across six big-league seasons, Hoskins has posted 148 home runs, 405 RBIs and a .242/.353/.492 slash line across 667 career games, worth 11.6 fWAR with Philadelphia.
One moment Phillies fans will forever cherish is Hoskins’ iconic game-winning round-tripper against the Atlanta Braves in Game 3 of the 2022 NL Division Series. In need of a spark, he provided just that courtesy of a three-run bomb, paving the way for a pivotal 9-1 victory.
The fan-favourite star slammed his bat to the ground while turning toward his team’s dugout, screaming with emotion before rounding the bases – an unforgettable scene the franchise turned into a mural at Citizens Bank Park.
Hoskins joins a Brewers club that captured their sixth NL Central title in 2023, only to be swept out of the wild-card round by the Diamondbacks. He’s expected to take over the everyday role at first base, vacated by Rowdy Tellez, who was non-tendered earlier this off-season.
Milwaukee’s offense finished bottom five in slugging percentage (.385) and isolated power (.146) across the majors a season ago, creating the need for a reliable middle-of-the-order thumper like Hoskins.
With Corbin Burnes and Willy Adames just one year away from free agency, many wondered if the Brewers would head in the opposite direction and trade both players prior to next season. But, as this recent signing proves, the organization aims to remain competitive in 2024.
While Hoskins is considered a poor defender, he excelled at the plate during his final season with the Phillies in 2022, hitting .246/.332/.462 with 30 home runs, 79 RBIs and a 122 wRC+ in 156 contests.
The underlying metrics were just as impressive as the right-hander ranked in the 75th percentile or higher in several offensive categories, including xwOBA, xSLG, barrel rate, sweet-spot percentage, chase rate and walk rate.
Almost one year removed from ACL surgery, Hoskins will look to replicate those results as part of a Brewers lineup that’s also expected to debut top prospect Jackson Chourio, who signed an eight-year, $81-million contract extension last month.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: Ian D’Andrea. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.