There were more accolades Friday for Phillies prospects Dylan Cozens and Rhys Hoskins.
Several days after Cozens was named Eastern League MVP and Hoskins EL Rookie of the Year, Reading's Bash Brothers were named the recipients of the Paul Owens award, which goes to the Phillies' top minor-league position player and pitcher each year.
It's the first time since 1997 (Jimmy Rollins, Jeff Key) that two position players have split the offensive honors. Right-hander Ben Lively received the pitching portion of the award.
Cozens and Hoskins had insanely powerful seasons for Double A Reading, which went 89-52 in the regular season. The Fightin Phils are in danger of suffering a disappointing playoff loss, down 2-0 to Trenton in the Eastern League's best-of-five division series, which moves to Reading on Friday night.
Cozens hit .276/.350/.591 with 40 homers, 125 RBIs and 38 doubles in 586 plate appearances with Reading this season. He became the first Eastern League player since 1981 to hit 40 home runs.
Hoskins kept nearly the same pace all season, hitting .281/.377/.566 with 38 homers and 116 RBIs.
"The hardest thing to develop is power and the hardest thing to find is a run-producing bat. We feel like both of these guys are going to be that," Phillies director of player development Joe Jordan said in a statement.
MLB
"It has been a fantastic experience to watch them, and the reward was seeing them develop as players. We couldn't have drawn it up any better. I think both of them should be a bright part of our future."
Cozens, a 22-year-old corner outfielder, was the Phillies' second-round pick in 2012. He appears poised to make the jump to Triple A next season. He'll need to cut down on his strikeouts, though, as 186 are far too many at the Double A level.
If Cozens figures things out against left-handed pitchers, he could be an impact player in a few years for the Phillies. His tools go beyond power — Cozens is also a solid defensive outfielder and has speed, evidenced by his 21 stolen bases in 22 attempts.
Hoskins, a right-handed hitting first baseman drafted in the fifth round out of Cal State Sacramento in 2014, showed real signs of development this season. He maintained his power stroke all year while cutting down his strikeouts and walking more and more. Here are Hoskins' walks and strikeouts by month:
April: 8 BB, 23 K
May: 8 BB, 32 K
June: 11 BB, 25 K
July: 15 BB, 21 K
August: 25 BB, 24 K
September: 4 BB, 0 K
Lively had a terrific season for Double A Reading and Triple A Lehigh Valley, going 18-5 with a 2.69 ERA and 0.94 WHIP in 28 starts. He walked just 42 batters in 170⅔ innings.
It's the second time in the last three years Lively has been named his organization's minor-league pitcher of the year. In 2014, he won that honor with the Reds. A few months later, he was traded to the Phillies for Marlon Byrd.
"Ben opened himself up in spring training and said, 'I’ve got to do what I can to get better,' and he has taken a huge step forward," Jordan said. "His delivery is sound and he is a big, strong guy that lives at the bottom of the strike zone. We saw this summer what he has a chance to be."
Lively may get a look in the majors in mid-to-late September. The Phillies have to add him to the 40-man roster this winter or they'll risk losing him in the Rule 5 draft, so they could get a head-start and add him to the 40 this month. It would give them a chance to see how his repertoire plays in the big leagues. Lively does not have dominant stuff — his fastball is in the 88 to 90 mph range and he relies on pinpoint command.
Cozens, Hoskins and Lively will receive their awards on Sept. 20 prior to the Phillies' 7:05 p.m. game against the White Sox.
Here's a look at the last 20 years of Paul Owens award-winners:
2015: C Andrew Knapp, RHP Ricardo Pinto
2014: SS J.P. Crawford, RHP Luis Garcia
2013: 3B Maikel Franco, RHP Severino Gonzalez
2012: 1B/OF Darin Ruf, RHP Tyler Cloyd
2011: SS Freddy Galvis, RHP Trevor May
2010: OF Domonic Brown, RHP Scott Mathieson
2009: OF Michael Taylor, RHP Kyle Drabek
2008: C Lou Marson, LHP J.A. Happ
2007: OF Quintin Berry, LHP Mike Zagurski
2006: OF Michael Bourn, RHP Carlos Carrasco
2005: OF Chris Roberson, RHP Robinson Tejeda
2004: 1B Ryan Howard, RHP Scott Mitchinson
2003: 1B Ryan Howard, LHP Cole Hamels
2002: 2B/3B Chase Utley, RHP Ryan Madson
2001: OF Marlon Byrd, RHP Brandon Duckworth
2000: OF Marlon Byrd, RHP Brandon Duckworth
1999: OF/1B Pat Burrell, RHP Adam Eaton
1998: 2B Marlon Anderson, RHP Carlton Loewer
1997: SS Jimmy Rollins, OF Jeff Key, RHP Ryan Brannan
As you can see, it's a mixed bag. Some of these players — Howard, Utley, Rollins, Hamels — went on to become starts. Many became solid big-league regulars. Some flamed out.