LOS ANGELES - Lots and lots of Phillies news Thursday. Let's run it down:
• Rhys Hoskins was examined by an oral surgeon in Philadelphia. He does not need surgery on his broken jaw. That means less time on the disabled list though manager Gabe Kapler could not offer a specific timetable for his recovery/return.
"It looks like it's going to be more of a weeks thing than a months thing which is really good news," Kapler said. "The break is stable so it does not require surgery."
Hoskins fouled a ball off his face Monday night and was cleared by doctors in Los Angeles to play Tuesday night. A routine CT scan Wednesday revealed a small fracture. He will rejoin the Phillies in San Francisco on Friday and be on a soft-foods diet.
• Slugging outfielder Dylan Cozens was recalled - on his 24th birthday - from Triple A Lehigh Valley to take Hoskins' roster spot. Cozens has 77 homers at the Double A and Triple A levels since the start of the 2016 season.
Cozens got the news after Lehigh Valley's game Wednesday night.
"I was in the shower with the boys," he said. "Our clubbie came in and said, '[Manager Gary Jones] wants you.' And then everybody started slapping me in the shower. I mean, he made it sound urgent. So I went in. I thought I was in trouble, per usual. I went in there and he said that Rhys got hurt, unfortunately, and they were going to send me here. So it was cool."
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Cozens will serve as a reserve outfielder.
"Right now we have three outfielders who are going to play fairly regularly," said Kapler, referring to Odubel Herrera, Nick Williams and Aaron Altherr. "We will look to get Coz his opportuntiies and get him at-bats off the bench. It's always nice to have a home run threat on the bench. Now we have two of them with Cozens and Mitch Walding."
Cozens hails from the Phoenix area. A number of family members and friends made it to Los Angeles for his big-league debut. Cozens was assigned No. 25. The hulking, 6-6 former football player wears a size 50 jersey with two extra inches sewn in for length.
Before batting practice, Cozens said he was excited to hit big-league balls. (They don't call them Titleists for nothing.) Cozens then went out and put on a big power display in batting practice.
• There was only a small update on Jerad Eickhoff, who continues to receive tests in St. Louis to determine whether thoracic outlet syndrome is the cause of the numbness he has been feeling in his fingertips. Kapler said the team received some encouraging news on Eickhoff, but he could not provide a full update because the pitcher was scheduled to see another doctor Friday.
• Reliever Drew Hutchison was designated for assignment and replaced by Mark Leiter Jr. Leiter was on his way to making the club in spring training when he suffered a forearm strain.
"We think Leiter deserves this opportunity," Kapler said. "We could use him an inning at a time or as a long man. His splitter/changeup combo is kind of unique. I think he profiles in shorts stints for us."
• Andrew Pullin, once a promising hitting prospect, has retired. He had been with Lehigh Valley.
