Phillies’ big bats bash Baltimore in latest sign of big season to come
Rhys Hoskins continued his big spring with another home run and Nick Castellanos showed again how his offseason adjustments are paying off.
CLEARWATER, Fla. — Spring training results are a good way to make yourself feel foolish a month into the regular season. So take them for what they are worth.
That said, if you’d rather read something into them, this Phillies lineup is giving you ample opportunity. The latest bit of temptation came in the form of a 14-6 win over the Orioles on Monday afternoon.
There were the back-to-back home runs by Rhys Hoskins and Alec Bohm. Both players now have four on the spring.
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There were the two doubles by Nick Castellanos, both of them examples of how his offseason swing adjustments have paid dividends.
There was the triple by Jake Cave and the 2-for-3 performance by Edmundo Sosa, who just might be the main lefty and righty bench bats this season.
Here’s what we saw with nine days to go before opening day.
Hoskins is having a monster spring on the eve of a season that will determine just how much richer he will become once he hits free agency this fall. With his homer against the Orioles, the Phillies first baseman is hitting a ridiculous .355/.474/.806 on the spring. He’s reached base in 16 of his 36 plate appearances with six extra base hits and nine strikeouts. Hoskins has hit a home run in three straight Grapefruit League games and in four of his last seven.
Castellanos’ performance might be the brightest given how directly it stemmed from some of the swing changes he made after last year’s difficult campaign. “Those two balls he hit down the line, although they weren’t scorched, last year, because he was jumping out there, he probably runs out of bat,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “And then he squares up a ball to center field in his last at-bat. He’s staying back; he’s seeing the ball. Because of that, he’s barreling up more balls.”
Newcomer Geovany Soto struck out three of the four batters he faced, a good sign for a pitcher who arrived last in camp due to visa issues.