Two Reading sluggers visit Phillies - and dream
The two minor-league sluggers stepped onto a big-league field Tuesday and saw their manager, catcher and centerfielder. Dylan Cozens and Rhys Hoskins, who each wore a button-down shirt and tie instead of red pinstripes, hugged the men with which they shared long bus rides during the unglamorous life that is double-A baseball.
The two minor-league sluggers stepped onto a big-league field Tuesday and saw their manager, catcher and centerfielder. Dylan Cozens and Rhys Hoskins, who each wore a button-down shirt and tie instead of red pinstripes, hugged the men with which they shared long bus rides during the unglamorous life that is double-A baseball.
"It's pretty surreal," Hoskins, 23, said.
"I'm excited," Cozens, 22, said, "to hopefully be here next year."
Right now, everything is possible for Cozens and Hoskins, who had two of the most productive seasons for any Phillies farmhand in recent history. They are not regarded as top prospects; both have holes in their games that could be exposed at higher levels of competition. But the gaudy numbers next to their names are enough to generate promise that one or both could be the next homegrown slugger to assault the favorable dimensions at Citizens Bank Park.
The two combined for 78 home runs, 64 doubles, 201 runs scored, 29 stolen bases and 311 strikeouts at double-A Reading. They split the Paul Owens Award, annually given to the top player in the Phillies minor-league system. Righthander Ben Lively, who posted a 2.69 ERA and 18 wins in 28 starts, was honored as the best pitcher.
That earned all three a two-day trip to South Philadelphia, where the Phillies paraded them to fans through TV and radio appearances and meet-and-greets with season-ticket holders. In Reading, marketers dubbed Cozens and Hoskins the "Baseballtown Bash Brothers." They sold T-shirts with the moniker. Fans at FirstEnergy Stadium could pose with cardboard cutouts of the two players.
It was hard to ignore the show.
"Fun," Hoskins said, when asked to describe it all.
"As the year went on, I tried to drink it all in," Cozens said. "The whole year was pretty awesome."
But when it ended, catcher Jorge Alfaro and outfielder Roman Quinn were the ones promoted to Philadelphia. Cozens and Hoskins, who exploited the hitter-friendly conditions at Reading, are slated to begin 2017 at triple-A Lehigh Valley. Both will go to the Dominican Republic to play winter ball, where they will face pitchers of a higher caliber.
The test of their huge numbers will begin.
"When you have those kind of years, you have to evaluate: Were those for real or not?" Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "Obviously, I don't like the high strikeouts. That's obviously something that has to be looked at. But, if you are going to strike out a lot and hit 40 home runs and drive in 120 runs, then I'll take it."
Both players mirror a trend in the majors: Hitters will strike out at a record pace in 2016 and come close to the all-time record for homers hit in a season. But the Eastern League is far from the National League.
Joe Jordan, the Phillies' director of player development, enjoyed how both hitters benefited from each other even though their arcs are dissimilar. They are different people; Cozens wore sunglasses, a flowery tie, and burgundy slacks Tuesday while Hoskins donned a quiet blue suit.
Hoskins, a fifth-round pick from Sacramento State, displayed a consistent power stroke in 2015. But Cozens, a former defensive end who once committed to play football at the University of Arizona, had never honed his prodigious raw power.
"The one thing we really tried to accomplish in 2015 was to just develop him as a hitter," Jordan said. "We just kept saying it over and over: Don't worry about power. Power is going to be there. And to his credit, in 2015, he gave himself to us. He did what we asked him to do. He hit eight home runs.
"This year, when he got to Reading, the ballpark is smaller and he got going. . . . He struck out more than he needed to. I understand. I really believe the answer is in the middle somewhere. I don't believe he's going to be a 180- or 190-strikeout guy. I don't. He's continued to develop. He knows exactly what he's capable of doing."
Scouts question both hitters' aptitude for breaking balls. Cozens could ultimately profile as a leftfielder. And Hoskins is not the most athletic player; he said he must improve on his fielding skills at first base.
Hoskins said his two-strike approach must improve.
"Try to put the ball in play as much as you can," Hoskins said. "You can always strike out less."
"I'd say the area I need to improve on the most," Cozens said, "is not chasing balls out of the strike zone."
In the meantime, they savored their Citizens Bank Park junket, and it was a chance to dream.
@MattGelb