Flashback: Rhys Hoskins Spends His Birthday With The Preston & Steve Show
The last time we saw Rhys Hoskins was March 17th, 2023. The sun was rising over right field of Bay Care Park, everyone was hype for the season and Rhys celebrating his 30th birthday. It was a great morning.
Six days later, he was carted off the field with a knee injury that happened while fielding a ground ball. The diagnosis was a torn ACL.
We all know how the rest of the year went. The Phils made a run into the postseason. Rhys surprised the crowd by throwing out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 1 of the wild-card series. We didn’t know at the time that would be the last time Rhys stepped onto the field at Citizens Bank Park as a Phillie.
On January 23rd, the news broke that Rhys Hoskins agreed to 2-year, $34 million contract with the Brewers. We’re so excited for our friend, but definitely going to miss our annual Spring Training meet up and mid-season conversations.
Below is our last conversation with Rhys. The article was written the day before his injury and never posted for obvious reasons, until now. Best of luck in Milwaukee Rhys and Jayme. We’ll see you in Philly this June.
Written March 22, 2023:
Did Rhys Hoskins hit a homerun on his first at bat on his 30th birthday? YUP. Were Preston & Steve the first people to wish him a happy birthday that day? Kinda. We were the first people who weren’t his wife to wish him a happy birthday.
He’s keeping count. Not of the birthday wishes, but of the games. Rhys said that this was his fourth time playing on Saint Patrick’s Day. Is doesn’t hinder his game, but Rob Thompson game him off the next day, so that’s nice.
Now on to talking about the World Series run. Game 3 against the Braves last year had one of the best crowd reactions in Phillies history. Rhys revealed that getting to those play-offs was one of the hardest things for the team this past season. He also talked about the raw emotion behind that bat spike.
Rhys solidified how important it was to get a taste of the prize. He says the camp has a confident, focused, and hungry group. People across the league have told the Phillies that they want to be with them.
For home runs, he cares if the ball goes over the fence. To their knowledge, there were no instances of tipping pitches during one of the games against the Astros. Rhys just finished Wednesday. He just started Yellowstone. During the season, his TV slows way down. He tries to watch shows with his wife, but he will sneak episodes in on the road. He’ll get to 7:00 games around 1:00/1:30. Batting practice is at 3:30 or so. They’re on the field at around 6:45. Rhys is usually the last one to leave. His wife bought beer for the players because she wanted to. Thanks to Rhys!
Thanks for being a great friend of The Preston & Steve Show, Rhys. We’re stoked to see you back on the field next season.