Rhys Hoskins made history with a Vlad Guerrero-style home run
Rhys Hoskins has been doing incredible things for the Philadelphia Phillies since he was called up on Aug. 10. He didn’t get his first hit until his fourth career game, but he hit his first homer the very next night. And a few innings later, he hit his second home run.
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It’s been a homer party ever since. And on Saturday, Hoskins added yet another one. The Phillies were facing the Chicago Cubs, and Hoskins came to bat against Kyle Hendricks in the first inning. Hoskins threw a strike, a ball and then Hoskins fouled off the next two. The fifth pitch was low — not just low in the strike zone, but low to the actual ground. If Hoskins had let it go, it would have been a ball, no question. But he didn’t let it go. Instead, he channeled the great Vlad Guerrero and went down to get that pitch, and then he drilled it into the seats in left center field for yet another home run.
Here’s the thing: Hoskins hit a homer against the Cubs on Friday night, too. He’s actually homered in seven straight days, and in seven of his last eight games. He homered in his first at-bat on Saturday, and he’s done that for three straight games.
Hoskins has played seventeen career games and he has 10 home runs. If you think that sounds insane, that’s because it is. Hoskins has made baseball history by hitting all those dingers in such a short time.
Rhys Hoskins is the first player in MLB history to hit 10 home runs in the first 20 games of his career (and today is only his 17th! game).
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 26, 2017
No player ever has hit ten home runs faster than Rhys Hoskins. He stands all alone in baseball history, but I don’t think he minds being alone here.
How is Hoskins doing this? Trevor Story probably has some idea, but it’s largely a mystery how players get locked in like this. But it’s certainly not a mistake — Hoskins has a carefully honed approach at the plate.
Most noticeable thing w/Hoskins: his approach consistently puts him in great position to take advantage & jump on mistake pitches like on HR pic.twitter.com/IRDEn9tuZt
— Meghan Montemurro (@M_Montemurro) August 25, 2017
Listening to him talk about his approach, he's fine w/taking pitches if not where he's looking or what he wants. Not fazed by falling behind
— Meghan Montemurro (@M_Montemurro) August 25, 2017
It sounds easy, but making those adjustments can be tough. Identifying “your pitch” and letting the bad ones go is one of the hardest parts of hitting. But if you’d like to see just how he looks when he’s doing it, here are Hoskins’ first nine home runs all in a row.
feast your eyes on all 9 of Rhys Hoskins' homers pic.twitter.com/Jl487pgVvP
— chris jones¯_(ツ)_/¯ (@LONG_DRIVE) August 26, 2017
A GIF is the perfect format for Hoskins’ home runs. That way, you can watch them over and over and over again.
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Liz Roscher is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on twitter! Follow @lizroscher
