Former Sacramento State star in International League home run chase
Rhys Hoskins, the former Jesuit High School and Sacramento State slugger, smacked his International League-tying 23rd home run Monday night for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs of Allentown, Pa., in a 9-3 loss to Gwinnett.
.@RhysHoskins22 ties fellow #BashBrother Dylan Cozens with this 2-run to left! They both have 23 home runs on the year. pic.twitter.com/encdJsW0vT
— IronPigs (@IronPigs) July 25, 2017
Hoskins shares the league’s home run lead with teammate Dylan Cozens. Hoskins, playing for the Philadelphia Phillies’ Triple-A team, leads the IL in RBI with 75 this season. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound first baseman crushed 38 homers last season in Double A.
“Rhys is doing everything he needs to do in Triple A, and the timing of the player’s promotion has to do with his own performance but also with opportunity,” Phillies general manager Matt Klentak told the Philadelphia Inquirer earlier this season.
Hoskins, 24, is in his fourth season in the minor leagues. The Phillies drafted him in the fifth round in 2014 after he earned Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year honors.
Also on the IronPigs is Yuba City native Brock Stassi, who hit a grand slam Tuesday in Lehigh Valley’s 5-0 win over Gwinnett.
This story was originally published July 25, 2017 at 7:27 AM with the headline "Former Sacramento State star in International League home run chase."