Phillies Mailbag: Hoskins Reunion, Realmuto, Bohm’s Lineup Spot

We are back once again with the 97.3 ESPN Phillies Mailbag.  Each week we take your questions and talk about them on The Sports Bash with Mike Gill.  Tune in Tuesday afternoons to hear your questions answered on the air.

I saw someone suggest that the Phillies might trade for Rhys Hoskins?  He's been pretty good with Milawaukee this year.  Any chance?
~Ryan

Indeed, my friend Luke Arcaini over at Crossing Broad took a look at former Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins as a potential trade target.

Luke writes:

Rhys Hoskins could play first, Kyle Schwarber could still DH, and Harper could go to left or right field. The Phillies signed Max Kepler to a one-year deal in the offseason, and while I liked the Kepler signing and still think he’s a good, impactful player for the Phillies, adding more right-handed power to this lineup should be their priority at the deadline when it comes to offense.

I agree with Luke that the Phillies could use some pop from the right side.

However, for the defensive alignment reasons, I don't think Hoskins makes sense for the Phillies.  It's the same reason the Phillies moved on from Hoskins to begin with.

The Phillies would need either Kyle Schwarber or Bryce Harper in left field.

I don't think Schwarber, who seems to have reached his offensive peak once he was out of the field, should return on a regular basis.

Interestingly, Hoskins is ahead of Harper defensively at first base this season.

Hoskins is currently at a -0.3 defensive WAR.  Harper is -0.4.  By the way, Schwarber is -0.7, despite hardly playing the field, making him statisitcally the worst fielder in MLB in terms of defensive WAR.

In the outfield, Harper was consistently a negative WAR for the Phillies, at -1.3 his last full year in the outfield and -0.9 in the eight games he played before the injury that ended his career as an outfielder.

While Harper was willing to make a move for the sake of a Pete Alonso signing, I don't think it's a good idea to move him back to the outfield for a temporary deadline acquisition.

If you're looking for a good clubhouse guy, ex-Phillies player, I personally would rather the Phillies see if they could talk Andrew McCutchen into coming back to be that right-handed bat.  He could share time with Max Kepler and be that offensive boost from the right side.

McCutchen and the Pirates have agreed at least informally not to trade him.  But maybe he would consider it for a place he is comfortable and has a shot at a World Series.

Why did J.T. Realmuto play all three games against the Athletics?  Shouldn't Rafael Marchan have played the day game after the night game?
~Michael

I am a little surprised at this one. The Phillies started Rafael Marchan on the 22nd in Denver, after the Phillies took the first three games against the Rockies and had a day game before hitting the road.  There was no off day in between.

So my best guess is that Thursday off in favor of Marchan, and with Monday as a scheduled off day, the Phillies felt they could get away with J.T. Realmuto playing that third game even though it was a day game after a night game.

I've frequently mentioned that the Phillies should give Realmuto more time off.  And now, he is in the middle of a slump, to boot.  In Realmuto's last seven games, he is batting just .188 with a .525 OPS.

I can't help but think about the second inning when the Phillies had the bases loaded and nobody out.  Realmuto grounded into a double play.   Had Marchan been in the lineup, it would have been Alec Bohm batting, most likely.  That could have made a difference in the day.

But big picture: Yes, I think Realmuto should sit more frequently.

Is it time to move Alec Bohm back up in the lineup?
~Kelly

The Phillies opened the season with Alec Bohm in the cleanup spot in the lineup.  But after a tough April (.213 average, .505 OPS), Bohm has performed considerably better in May.

Since the calendar hit May,. Bohm is batting .341.  He is has hit four home runs, four doubles, and driven in 12.  His OPS for May is sitting at .919.  That's pretty good.

With J.T. Realmuto struggling, at the very least, Bohm should hit ahead of Realmuto.   But I might even consider hitting him ahead of Nick Castellanos, who has cooled somewhat, though not totally.

With Bryson Stott, Trea Turner, Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber hitting in a row, I think batting Bohm fifth would be helpful.

On the days that Stott does not lead off, Bohm could hit fourth ahead of those three.

They went into the season thinking he should be the cleanup hitter.  He's performed well.  I don't see why he should not be in the middle of the lineup once again.