January 24, 2024
Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports
Rhys Hoskins is signing with the Milwaukee Brewers. His classic playoff bat spike will keep him tied to Philadelphia for good though.
After missing the entire 2023 season due to injury, Rhys Hoskins is now leaving Philadelphia for good. The Phillies' former slugging first baseman reportedly signed a two-year deal worth $34 million with the Milwaukee Brewers, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
It's been more than 14 months since Hoskins last stepped into the batter's box at Citizens Bank Park, but across his seven years spent with the Fightins, one day, one single day that will live on forever in Philadelphia lore, stands tall above them all.
Let's rewind to the 2022 NLDS. Game 3. It was the Phillies' first home playoff game in 11 years. That wait was over 4,000 days to see the Phils out there in true October baseball in South Philly. Hoskins delivered an instant classic moment. In the bottom of the third, Hoskins rocked a three-run homer off Atlanta pitcher Spencer Strider that had the entire neighborhood shaking:
RHYS SPIKE.#Postseason pic.twitter.com/6VYBHIk0AU
— MLB (@MLB) October 14, 2022
That bat spike. The bat spike. It's ingrained into the history of this franchise and this city now. That was the loudest I had heard a Philadelphia stadium since Patrick Robinson's iconic pick-6 in the 2017 NFC Championship Game. Yes, Hoskins and the Phils' run that year did not result in a parade like that the Eagles campaign did, but that postseason, that homer, that spike shifted the energy of the whole Phillies franchise.
They returned to the postseason once more in 2023 and nearly made a return to World Series. The Phillies are poised to be in that position yet again in 2024. The vibes of Citizens Bank Park shifted. It's now a place for opponents to be feared. The bat spike heard 'round the world played an integral part in that.
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