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PHILADELPHIA — — Rhys Hoskins leaned on his left crutch as he helped injured teammate Bryce Harper raise the Phillies’ 2022 National League championship banner. He got a standing ovation as he hobbled to the field two days later to accept his championship ring.

Hoskins’ participation in Philadelphia’s opening weekend festivities was about all he could muster as the slugging first baseman recovers from a torn ACL in his left knee.

But should the Phillies make another run in October, Hoskins is ready to spike the seven- to nine-month rehab expectation and play in the postseason.

“I’m going to do everything in my power to give myself an opportunity that if and when we are playing in late October, I have a chance to contribute to that,” Hoskins said Monday.

The 30-year-old Hoskins — playing on a $12 million, one-year contract — spoke to reporters for the first time since he “felt a pop” and was injured in late March while fielding a grounder in a spring training game. Hoskins hit 30 homers with 79 RBI last season for the reigning NL champions.

He hit six homers in Philadelphia’s playoff run last season. The Phillies lost to the Houston Astros in the World Series.

The second-longest tenured Phillies player behind Aaron Nola, Hoskins had a moment forever etched in Philly sports lore when he hit a three-run homer and slammed his bat in celebration in a Game 3 win against Atlanta in the NL Division Series. The moment is captured on a mural on a corridor inside Citizens Bank Park that leads from the clubhouse to the dugout.

Hoskins was in full uniform for the banner-raising and for his hug with owner John Middleton when he got his ring. But he wore a Phillies sweatshirt and his bulky leg brace was on display as he lumbered to the middle of the clubhouse Monday to talk about his injury and his comeback. While his playing future is uncertain, the championship weekend was one for him to remember.

“Just being able to be here but be part of it was something that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life,” he said. “Those pennants stay up there forever.”

Hoskins had surgery nearly two weeks ago in Texas on the same day the Phillies opened the season against the Rangers.

The Phillies’ contingency plans suffered a setback when replacement Darick Hall suffered a torn ligament in his right thumb. He will have surgery on Wednesday. The Phillies started Kody Clemens at first base Monday night against the Marlins. Alec Bohm started at third base and will continue to get spot starts at first against tough left-handers.

Hoskins said he needs about six weeks on crutches and then rehab to build strength in the leg before he hopefully can start to jog and eventually run at the three-month mark.

“I often find myself asking why, right? Trying to figure out the answer,” he said. “Sometimes there isn’t and that’s just kind of how it goes. I think being here with the guys, trying to be as engaged as I can about what’s going on in the field is best. Sure, hard, of course. I want to do everything that I can to be out there. We have big expectations for the talent that we have in the clubhouse.”

Hoskins has tried not to think about the fact that his last moment as a player in a Phillies uniform could be the one of him taken off the field on a cart.

“So much has to happen before I think of anything that has to do with my future or what a professional contract may or may not look like,” he said. “Of course I thought about it. Of course I’m disappointed. But right now, it’s about the small wins I have to focus on throughout this rehab.”

Hoskins said he found some encouragement that he can make a same-season comeback from teammate Kyle Schwarber.

Schwarber tore two ligaments in his left knee after a frightening collision with a Cubs teammate in 2016 while chasing down a flyball. It was only the third game of the season and Schwarber figured his year was over.

But 201 days later, and following months of relentless rehab, Schwarber returned to help the Cubs win the World Series. He batted .412 with seven hits, one double and two RBI in five World Series games.

Hoskins stopped himself when talking about his recovery timeline and noted: “I’m going to lean on those people who have the experience with the next seven to nine months — well, six months — what I should expect.”

Hoskins said he planned to stick around the team as much as possible while he rehabs.

“I’ll pour myself into this team just like I always have and try to find a way to make a positive impact,” he said.

——

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP–Sports

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Wisconsin fires offensive coordinator after 2 years

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Wisconsin fires offensive coordinator after 2 years

Wisconsin fired offensive coordinator Phil Longo on Sunday, a day after the Badgers’ 16-13 home loss to No. 1 Oregon.

In a statement, Badgers coach Luke Fickell thanked Longo for his two seasons with the program, while adding, “We are not where we need to be and believe this decision is in the best interest of the team.”

Wisconsin ranks 97th nationally in scoring and 102nd in passing while operating an Air Raid-style offense that Longo brought with him from North Carolina and other stops.

The Badgers, who lost starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke to a season-ending injury Sept. 14, had only three points and 88 yards in the second half against Oregon, which rallied from a 13-6 deficit entering the fourth quarter.

Wisconsin ranked 101st nationally in scoring in Longo’s 23 games as coordinator and failed to eclipse 13 points on its current three-game losing streak. Quarterback Braedyn Locke had only 96 passing yards against the Ducks.

Fickell did not immediately announce an interim coordinator for Wisconsin’s final regular-season games against Nebraska and Minnesota.

Fickell had long targeted Longo for a coordinator role, going back to his time as Cincinnati’s coach. Longo, 56, oversaw productive offenses at Ole Miss, North Carolina, Sam Houston State and other spots but never consistently got traction at a Wisconsin program that had operated dramatically differently on offense before his arrival.

“This team still has a lot in front of us and I am committed to doing everything we can to close out this season with success,” Fickell said in his statement.

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4-star QB Jones, former FSU commit, picks Florida

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4-star QB Jones, former FSU commit, picks Florida

Four-star quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. has committed to Florida, he told ESPN on Sunday, joining the Gators’ 2025 class four days after pulling his pledge from Florida State.

Jones, a four-year starter at Florida’s Mandarin High School, is ESPN’s No. 9 dual-threat passer in the Class of 2025. After multiple trips to Florida throughout his recruitment, Jones returned to campus Saturday, taking an official visit with the Gators during the program’s 27-16 win over LSU. A day later, Jones stands as the lone quarterback pledge in a 2025 Florida class that includes five pledges from the ESPN 300.

“I pretty much saw everything I needed to see when I visited last spring — I just love everything around the campus,” Jones told ESPN. “And then hanging out with the guys yesterday, seeing the camaraderie with each other, that really just sealed it for me.”

Jones was the longest-tenured member of Mike Norvell’s 2025 class at Florida State before his decommitment from the Seminoles on Thursday morning.

Jones’ exit came days after Norvell announced the firings of three assistant coaches on Nov. 10, including offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Alex Atkins. Jones was the first Florida State commit to pull his pledge in the wake of the staff shakeup but marked the Seminoles sixth decommitment since the start of the regular season, joining five ESPN 300 recruits who have left Norvell’s recruiting class across the program’s 1-9 start.

Jones’ commitment follows a key late-season victory for Billy Napier on Saturday and marks the Gators’ first recruiting win since athletic director Scott Strickland announced on Nov. 7 that Florida would stick with the third-year coach beyond the 2024 season.

Uncertainty over Napier’s future had weighed down Florida’s recruiting efforts in the 2025 class as the Gators began November with the No. 39 class in ESPN’s latest team rankings for the cycle. But Jones’ pledge comes as a boost for Florida one day after the Gators hosted a handful of high-profile flip targets, including five-star offensive tackle Solomon Thomas (Florida State pledge) and four-star wide receiver Jaime Ffrench (Texas pledge).

When Jones signs with Florida, he’ll arrive on campus flanked by fellow in-state offensive talents in four-star wide receivers Vernell Brown III (No. 44 in the ESPN 300) and Naeshaun Montgomery (No. 115), as well as four-star running back Waltez Clark (No. 223). Florida is also set to sign a pair of in-state defenders from the 2025 ESPN 300 between four-star defensive end Jalen Wiggins (No. 68) and four-star cornerback Ben Hanks Jr. (No. 121).

With Jones’ commitment, Florida has another jolt to its momentum on the recruiting trail as the Gators seek to chart a strong finish in the 2025 cycle next month. More imminently, Florida will host No. 11 Ole Miss on Saturday.

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Ted Williams’ 1946 MVP award sells for over $500K

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Ted Williams' 1946 MVP award sells for over 0K

A rare souvenir postcard picturing Hank Aaron as a rookie with the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro Leagues sold for nearly $200,000 at a baseball memorabilia auction that also included Ted Williams’ 1946 AL MVP award, which went for $528,750.

The Aaron postcard from the scrapbook of scout Ed Scott, who discovered Aaron, went for $199,750 following a bidding war that soared past the pre-sale estimate of $5,000-$10,000, Hunt Auctions said.

The auction included 280 items from Williams’ personal collection that had been held by his daughter, Claudia, who died last year. Among the other items were a silver bat awarded for his 1958 batting title, which sold for more than $270,000, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom presented to him by fellow naval aviator George H.W. Bush, which went for $141,000.

The sale also included items from the collection of Rutherford Hayes Jones, the business manager of the Washington Giants, one of the earliest Black baseball teams. The trove was discovered in 2001 in a suitcase, where it had been unseen for 40 years.

A first batch of items from Claudia Williams’ collection went up for auction in 2012 at Fenway Park and garnered more than $5 million.

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