Rhys Hoskins’ swing started to click the final week of Spring Training in Clearwater, Fla., even if the results weren’t there.

They are there now.

He has six doubles and one home run in six games entering Friday night’s series opener against the Braves at Truist Park in Atlanta. Ryan Howard (2010), John Kruk (1993) and Del Ennis (1950) are the only other Phillies to have seven extra-base hits in the team’s first six games.

“I knew I was feeling what I had hoped to feel,” Hoskins said about the final week of camp. “Then you kind of just get into the rhythm of the season. The timing just continues to hone in. I didn’t miss pitches.”

Hoskins, who is batting .417 (10-for-24) with a 1.208 OPS, is one of the best hitters in baseball at wearing down a pitcher. It often results in walks, which is why he has a career .367 on-base percentage. Coincidentally, he has not walked this season. But why walk when you’re doubling and homering nearly one out of every three plate appearances?

“It seems like every ball he’s hit is a rocket,” Phillies manager Joe Girardi said.

Center field production
Phillies center fielders entered Friday with a .332 OPS, which ranked 28th in baseball. Adam Haseley is batting .286 (4-for-14) with one double, three strikeouts and a .643 OPS. (He is 2-for-2 as a left fielder.) Roman Quinn is 0-for-9 with seven strikeouts and a .250 OPS. He has been hit three times with a pitch.

“The most important thing is playing a good center field and getting on base,” Girardi said about expectations for his center fielders. “It helps you turn the lineup over. It gives you a chance to score more runs.”

What does Girardi make of Quinn’s start? He started Spring Training similarly, striking out at an eye-popping rate before settling and playing much better the second half of camp.

“He’s probably pressing a little bit too much,” Girardi said. “He’s trying to make some more adjustments in his swing to make more contact. I think his last three or four at-bats have been a lot better.”

Getting to 85 percent
Hoskins is the Phillies’ union rep and said that he will receive the COVID vaccine once it becomes available to him.

“I think there’s enough information and data out there and a lot of medical experts are pushing for people to get it,” Hoskins said. “I think as a general statement believing in what science is saying is usually a pretty safe and logical bet, so when it does become available, I will be getting it.”

Teams were informed just before Opening Day that MLB and the MLBPA have agreed to relax certain health and safety protocols contained in the 2021 Operations Manual for fully vaccinated Tier 1 Individuals and for clubs where 85 percent of their Tier 1 Individuals are fully vaccinated. As part of that memo, players and staff were again strongly encouraged to receive one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines when eligible.

The Yankees and Cardinals either have crossed that threshold or expect to cross it shortly.

“Do I think that we’ll get to 85 percent?” Hoskins said. “I’m not sure.

“I do think that guys are looking forward to getting back to normal, being able to walk into the clubhouse and feel normal in the clubhouse, and have as many hitters’ meetings as we want. Just those types of things that aren’t normal anymore. I think there are a lot of guys looking forward to getting that feeling back. Whether or not we get to 85 percent is still to be seen.”

Hitting that mark could become a competitive advantage for teams. The Nationals just had four games postponed because of positive test results. If the Phillies have a similar outbreak this season, it could hurt their chances to make the postseason for the first time since 2011.

“I think we want to stay safe regardless of what’s going on with other teams,” Hoskins said. “But it’s definitely a reminder of how easily this virus can spread and how easily it can derail some momentum that a team might have. Three, four or five days off in a season is something that we’re not used to. We kind of saw it last year. It can lead to some injuries or soreness that guys didn’t expect. Over a long 162-game season, those are the types of things that, if we want to be where we want to be in October, we can’t really afford to have.”