Phillies need sluggers. Dylan Cozens and Rhys Hoskins may fit the bill

CLEARWATER, Fla. - It is no secret that the Phillies were one of baseball's worst power-hitting teams last season. They ranked 24th in homers, last in OPS, second to last in slugging percentage, and last in RBIs. They slogged through the season with a powerless offense in a ballpark built for power.

But help, the team hopes, could be near. Dylan Cozens and Rhys Hoskins will begin the season at triple A a year after combining to hit 78 homers at double A. This season could determine whether "The Bash Brothers" can become the sluggers of the next contending Phillies team.

"This year is all about timing," Hoskins said. "You're one step away. You have to be ready the whole time. Triple A is a different animal. It's a more controlled game with a lot of veteran guys that know what they're doing. It will be a good test. I'm excited to learn that side of the game."

Hoskins batted .281 last year with 38 homers, 116 RBIs, and a .943 OPS. It was a continuation of his 2015, when he added a leg kick to his swing to become one of the organization's best hitters in a season spent at low-A Lakewood and high-A Clearwater.

The first baseman impressed the Phillies this spring with his approach at the plate as manager Pete Mackanin repeatedly observed that Hoskins has "a good idea" when he steps into the batter's box.

"Hoskins really has good at-bats," Mackanin said. "The thing that I look for is the quality of at-bats that they give you. You can be a free swinger in spring training and just swing hard and hit four or five homers in spring. But you look at Hoskins, he seems to have a real good plan when he goes to the plate. I think he's going to be a really good hitter. We told him to go down there and put up numbers and you'll become a potential major-leaguer at some point, even this year."

Cozens, who will turn 23 in May, led all of minor-league baseball last season with 40 homers. The rightfielder batted .276 with 125 RBIs and a .941 OPS. His strikeout numbers (186 in 134 games) and trouble against lefthanders (a .197 average with just five homers) are worth monitoring.

"It's another level in the minor leagues, another bridge I have to cross," Cozens said. "I'm just trying to do the same thing and keep getting better. It's the same thing I'll try to do in the big leagues."

His power surge last season was no surprise. Cozens is 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds. It is as if he were built to hit homers. The Phillies were infatuated with his power in 2012, when they drafted him in the second round and lured him away from playing college football by giving him a $660,000 signing bonus. First, Cozens said, he had to learn to become a better hitter. The power then followed as a result.

"I got a taste of it last spring, when I brought him to Port Charlotte as a minor-leaguer, an extra guy," Mackanin said. "He hit about three or four balls over the batter's eye in center field and on the roof of the building in right field. I'm well aware of his power, and I think he's going to be a real good hitter for power. He's a good defensive player, too."

Ryan Howard is the only Phillie to hit 30 or more homers in a season since 2011. The Phillies are desperate for power hitters who can take advantage of Citizens Bank Park's tight dimensions. It is likely something they will address in free agency, but Cozens and Hoskins could provide an internal option.

This season will provide a clearer picture of what the Phillies have. The sluggers will face stiffer pitching at triple A and play with the pressure of being on the brink of the majors. They will also have to prove that their power was not inflated by Reading's ballpark, as 69 percent of their homers came in Berks County. If they are able to do that, Cozens and Hoskins could push their way to Philadelphia by the end of the season.

They spent four weeks in major-league spring training, which began with a February exhibition against a Division II college team. Mackanin filled his lineup that afternoon with prospects. If there was a day to dream, it was then. Cozens and Hoskins hit back to back in the middle of the order, just as they did last season at Reading. It was easy to envision those names being written into a Phillies lineup card when the games begin to matter.

"It's hard not to," Hoskins said. "We've talked about it and joked about it. It's definitely something that the both of us dream about."