Rhys Hoskins begins Phillies' triple play, hits MLB-record 11th HR to start career

PHILADELPHIA -- Rookie Rhys Hoskins continued a spectacular start to his major league career, hitting another home run while also helping the Phillies turn a triple play against the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.

After Anthony Rizzo opened the fifth inning with a walk and moved to second on a Tommy La Stella single, Javier Baez sent a low, sinking line drive toward left field. Hoskins went down to catch the ball near the ground with his glove dragging behind him as he made the grab. He popped up to throw the ball as it came out of his glove.

Unsure what to do, Rizzo ended up on third base with La Stella halfway between first and second. Hoskins made the easy throw to second to double up Rizzo, and then Cesar Hernandez threw to first for the triple play.

The Cubs challenged the catch, but the umpires determined that the ball came out of Hoskins' glove after the catch was made.

Hoskins later added to his torrid start at the plate with a home run in the eighth inning. His 11 homers in 18 career games are another MLB record. He has 11 games to hit a 12th home run and set yet another benchmark.

The homer padded the Phillies' lead as they went on to win 6-3andtake two out of three games in the series.

It was the Phillies' major-league-leading fifth triple play since 2007, breaking a tie with the Milwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Indians, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The Phillies last turned one in August 2016.

The Cubs hadn't hit into a triple play since September 2014.