Dog o' Day
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Philadelphia Phillies welcome pup to spring training

By Wesley Coburn

NAGOYA, JAPAN - NOVEMBER 15: Infielder Rhys Hoskins of the Philadelphia Phillies flies out in the bottom of 6th inning in the bottom of 6th inning during the game six between Japan and MLB All Stars at Nagoya Dome on November 15, 2018 in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images)
NAGOYA, JAPAN - NOVEMBER 15: Infielder Rhys Hoskins of the Philadelphia Phillies flies out in the bottom of 6th inning in the bottom of 6th inning during the game six between Japan and MLB All Stars at Nagoya Dome on November 15, 2018 in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images) /
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The Philadelphia Phillies saw a special spring training guest visit last week.

The Philadelphia Phillies are a professional baseball team, and so are for humans only. But things are a little more relaxed during spring training, and with Love Your Pets Day on Wednesday, they had to get into the fun.

The Phillies welcomed Rhys Hoskins’s dog Rookie to their practice facility in Clearwater, Florida.

Hoskins’s Rookie – not to be confused with the batdog for the minor league Trenton Thunder, or the Ottawa Senators‘ guide dog – spent the day playing fetch and generally being admired.

Dog O’Day learned of this story through MLB.com.

The Phillies gave Rookie a 12/10 for sure. (That’s using Doggo Lingo math, of course.)

Rookie is an English Golden Retriever, and has his own Instagram account, where he claims his sister Missy gives him a hard time. (That’s part of what sisters are for, sorry, buddy. It’s in their job description.) He can be followed at @thelifeofrookie.

He greatly enjoyed his time at the ballpark, seeing what Dad does for work all the time. We also think baseball parks are some of the best parks out there, except maybe for dog parks.

Hoskins is a left fielder/first baseman beginning his third year in the majors. So far he has 181 hits, 45 doubles, 52 home runs, 144 runs batted in, 126 runs scored, seven stolen bases and a .249 batting average.

During 2019 spring training Hoskins is currently hitting 3 for 5 with a double, two runs batted in, one run scored and a batting average of .600 through two games.

(Stats come from Baseball Reference.)

For more Phillies news and information for the Phanatics out there wanting diamonds with their cheesesteaks, be sure to check out That Ball’s Outta Here, the FanSided Network’s top stop for all things related to the Philadelphia Phillies.

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Philadelphia opens their 2019 season at 3:05 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 28 at Citizens Bank Park against the National League East foes the Atlanta Braves.

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