Kinkead: the Phillies announced Thursday night that Rhys Hoskins has a torn ACL. Anthony’s full story was published a few hours earlier –

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The original idea behind this post was to talk about how the lineup the Phillies were trotting out against the Detroit Tigers might resemble the lineup they would use next Friday in Texas against Jacob deGrom and the Rangers on Opening Day.

That idea crumbled with Rhys Hoskins left knee:

The Phillies carted Hoskins off the field, and announced they will send him for testing and will update his injury when appropriate.


Of course they will, but you don’t get carted off a baseball field with a minor injury. I’m not a doctor, but these kinds of non-contact knee injuries tend to be significant ones. Even if it’s not what we are all thinking (cough… ACL… cough…) it’s probably not going to be a two-week stint on the IL and then come right back.

Then again…

Now, I’ve been around this game (sports media) for a long time, and my experience tells me that a manager wouldn’t just come out and say what he said (“Maybe it was more fear than pain… they said he was walking around in the clubhouse afterward, so that’s a good sign”) if the injury was a sure-fire season-ender like we all assumed at first – especially not on the team’s telecast. So, maybe there’s a cause for Phillies fans to be a little more optimistic than what we all immediately thought.

But, who knows. We’ll still have to wait and see.

However the notion that today’s lineup, which looked like this…

…could possibly be the first look at the Opening Day lineup is most likely out the window now.

Instead, the Phillies are being thrust into a world of uncertainty, but not one that should be panic-stricken.

For the remainder of this post, we’ll assume this is a more significant injury for Hoskins than not. If that changes, and it turns out to be something that he can recover from in time to play meaningful baseball this season, then we’ll do another post with lineup analysis attached to it.

But, humor me and assume for this exercise that Hoskins has a major knee injury (yes, you can walk around the clubhouse on a torn ACL, or similar injury), and is no longer an option for the Phillies.

While I have been a staunch defender of Hoskins on this site, and even discussed his Red October Redemption, I also don’t believe this would be as crushing a blow to the Phillies as the instant reaction of many seems to think.

Sure, we all hope for the best for Rhys and we want him to make as rapid a recovery as possible, but it’s one of those things that managers and coaches often say – you have to move on and work with the players you have, not the ones you don’t.

It can seem callous at times, but it’s the reality. The Phillies aren’t suddenly NOT a World Series contender without Rhys Hoskins.

In 2021, Atlanta Braves fans thought their season was flushed when they lost star outfielder Ronald Acuna, Jr. to a knee injury in the summer. Then, they went out and traded for three outfielders, hoping one of them could fill the void, and all three were big contributors to their run to the World Championship.

And Hoskins, who, again, is better than a lot of people give him credit for, will be missed. But the reality is, he’s on average a 2.5 WAR player. That’s a good player, but it’s not irreplaceable.

So, what options do the Phillies have at this point?

Well, it likely starts with Darick Hall, who was already going to be a key player for the Phillies, likely being called upon to do a bunch of DHing while Bryce Harper is on the mend from his offseason Tommy John surgery.

But the Phillies won’t have to rely on one guy. So, Hall doesn’t have to feel the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Hall will get his chances, sure, but J.T. Realmuto can play there once or twice a week and have Garrett Stubbs catch. You can shift Alec Bohm over to first for a game and have either Edmundo Sosa or Josh Harrison play a game at third.

And, assuming we’re right about the severity of Hoskins’ injury and it will keep him out for more than 60 days, he won’t count against the 40-man roster (placed on the 60-day I.L.) allowing the Phillies to carry another player.

Might they consider Kodi Clemens, who has also had a good camp, since he plays first base, among other positions? Scott Kingery is still an option too, with his versatility opening up the ability for someone else to play first base.

And while the combination of Hall, Stubbs, Harrison, Sosa, Clemens, and Kingery may not make up for Hoskins’ overall production, they can take on a sizable chunk of it.

Dave Dombrowski and Sam Fuld don’t have to run out and make an alarmist trade right away to try and make up for the loss of Hoskins.

That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if they kicked a few tires.

There are not a lot of options as far as players who are on expiring contracts who could slot in there. Nor are there players who would be available now, although they might become available in July if their teams are out of the playoff race.

Just for fun, so you can play armchair GM at home, here are some names on the final year of their current contracts. Would you take any of these guys over what the Phillies currently have at their disposal?

  • Joey Votto (Cincinnati) – The 41-year old is likely in his final season, and he’s not what he once was. He has a full no-trade clause and will likely retire with the Reds, although there is a narrow path that could see him get traded to his hometown Toronto Blue Jays for a playoff push. However, he’s also being paid $22.5 million this year.
  • Joc Pederson (San Francisco) – He’s mostly an outfielder, although he’s played first base in the past (not well), and is likely more of a DH type at this point in his career. Plus, the Giants will likely be decent enough to hang around the playoff conversation, so they most likely won’t be looking to trade him. Plus, he costs $19.65 million.
  • Cody Bellinger (Chicago Cubs) – The former Dodger is on a prove-it contract after falling off a cliff offensively in recent seasons. He’s mostly an outfielder these days, but he can play first as well. The Cubs fancy themselves a contender though, and have an option to keep Bellinger if he rebounds.
  • Josh Bell (Cleveland) It’s unlikely that the Guardians will look to move Bell, as they remain a favorite to win the AL Central. Bell also has a player option for next season.
  • Max Muncy (Los Angeles Dodgers) – Muncy has been trending backwards the last two seasons, but the Dodgers are hoping with the change in the shift rules, that he’ll get back to what he was a few years back. There’s also a Club option attached to this $1.5 million deal for next season, and the Dodgers are certainly going to be contenders.
  • Joey Gallo (Minnesota) – Again, an outfielder with experience at first base, like Bellinger, he’s another reclamation project on a team that plans to contend.
  • Brandon Belt (Toronto) – The Blue Jays signed the long-time Giant this past offseason and they are a World Series contender in the AL, so this is as unlikely a scenario as it gets.
  • Wil Myers (Cincinnati) – Another outfielder who can play first base, Myers signed with the Reds in the offseason, and there is a mutual option beyond this year, but at 34, he might not be the right guy for a rebuild, so maybe there’s a possibility of Cincy flipping him quickly. At $7.5 million, he’s a low risk possibility.
  • Jonathan Schoop (Detroit) – More of a second baseman than first baseman, Schoop has played on the cold corner before. Schoop is a veteran with some occasional pop, but he’s frequently a lower average, low on base guy. Like Myers at $7.5 million he’s not breaking the bank, but I’m not sure he’s an improvement over what you have in house.
  • C.J. Cron (Colorado) – This one is a little more interesting. He’s a right handed power hitter who made his first all-star game last season at age 32 with the Rockies, though he tailed off considerably in the second half. Still, He finished with 29 homers and 102 RBI and a .783 OPS, which are very comparable to Rhys. He’s only making $7.25 million, which is a value and the Rockies are easily the last place team in the NL West. They likely won’t trade him now, because they might have that feeling of it being the start of the season and everyone has high hopes, but this could be a name to keep an eye on as the season progresses if the Phillies feel the need to try and upgrade the position.
  • Trey Mancini (Chicago Cubs) – As noted with Bellinger earlier, the Cubs feel they can contend and signed Mancini in the offseason as part of that plan, so he’s also not an option now, but if the Cubs plan isn’t coming to fruition, then maybe you can revisit this one in July.
  • Matt Carpenter (San Diego) – A veteran who prior to last season looked like his career was over, Carpenter had a renaissance season with the Yankees, that earned him a contract with the Padres. There’s also a player option for next season attached to this deal and he’s 38 years old. Plus, the Padres are a legit contender. So, this is a no as well.
  • Brad Miller (Texas) – Do we really want to go down this path again? Great clubhouse guy. Has a little pop from the left side. He couldn’t replace Rhys when Hoskins went down in 2021, so why would we think he can do it two years later?
  • Ji-Man Choi (Pittsburgh) – He gets on base. He’s good defensively. He’s cheap ($4.65 million) and he’s on a bad team. That’s a formula, but I still think the options are better internally.
  • Garrett Cooper (Miami) – He’s one of those annoying Marlins who is a decent hitter who seems to always kill the Phillies (lifetime against the Phillies he’s .289/.359/.430 with a .789 OPS). And although, like Rhys, he’s a righty, he doesn’t hit for power. This would be a bargain basement trade in July at best.
  • Darin Ruf (New York Mets) – I just put this here as a joke. He is a free agent at the end of the season but… no.
  • Jesus Aguilar (Oakland) – The Phillies have seen a lot of Aguilar with the Marlins in recent years and with Milwaukee before that. He signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the A’s, who trade away everybody. He has some power, but he’s not a reliable every day option and is better in a platoon – not that the Phillies can afford to carry two first base-only guys on this current roster, so it’s probably unlikely, even if the team and money make a lot of sense.