Rhys Hoskins

Last week, I talked about how much fun watching Bryce Harper in the playoffs has been. Turns out, his teammate, Rhys Hoskins is also a blast.

Harper and Hoskins have both been playing very well in the postseason and were key to the Phllies winning the National League Pennant. At times, Hoskins may have gotten a little cocky.

However, he has every right to celebrate when he's hitting clutch home runs like these two:

And this one:

So, go ahead and flip or slam your bat, Rhys. You earned it.

Congratulations, Rhys Hoskins! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week. You probably would have won the title anyway, but it doesn't hurt that your #17, and 17 is my favorite prime number.

PS: Thanks to my friend and hardcore Phillies fan Josh for nominating Rhys Hoskins. I'm very happy for him that his boys are going to the World Series.

Bryce Harper

I hadn't really watched a Phillies game during the regular season. I managed to catch some of their postseason play, and it reminded me of a couple things about Bryce Harper: 1. he's very good at baseball, and 2. he's super fun to watch.

Harper is having a great run in the two series the Phillies have played and won this postseason. He has a .435 batting average and 1.437 OPS with 3 doubles, 3 home runs and 6 RBI in just six games. MLB was kind enough to put together a reel of Harper's highlights in the NLDS

Seeing him play last week also reminded me that, somehow, Harper manages to be extremely cocky....

...and a total goofball--often at the same time.

It just so happens that cocky and goofy are two traits I really appreciate in a baseball player. Harper also has other attributes that I like to see--as evidenced by his many appearances on this blog.

Speaking of Harper's assets, I would like to thank the person at Topps who is responsible for this card celebrating his performance in the NLDS.

Congratulations, Bryce Harper! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week. Also, HAPPY (one-day-belated) BIRTHDAY! It's nice to celebrate a fellow October baby during Libra Season.

Aaron Judge

Anyone who has been paying attention could have seen this one coming. Even though one round of the playoffs is already over, this is the last MLBoyfriend of the regular season. Aaron Judge is baseball's biggest star and he ended an amazing season with a great week.

On October 4th, Judge hit his 62nd home run of the season setting the record for the American League. (Fun fact: Roger Maris's record of 61 home runs in a season stood for 61 years.)

I have featured Judge many times before--including just two months ago--but there was no way I was going to let this milestone pass unrewarded.

Also, it's always nice to have an excuse to post pics of this handsome face.

Congratulations, Aaron Judge! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week!

Albert Pujols

Let's hear it for the oldest player in Major League Baseball. Albert Pujols is having one heck of a swan song.

Last week, Pujols had 6 runs, 2 home runs, 6 RBI, a .400 average and 1.638 OPS. As a fellow Gen-Xer, I'm proud that he put up stats any Millennial or Gen-Z player would be very happy to have.

Since I'm so late in posting today, I can report news from tonight. Pujols hit his 703rd career home run just a few hours ago. That gave him his 2,216th RBI. Putting him second on the list of most RBIs after Hank Aaron and one ahead of Babe Ruth.

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A post shared by St. Louis Cardinals (@cardinals)

Pujols also happens to be quite the zaddy.

Cogratulations, Albert Pujols! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week.

Steven Kwan

Steven Kwan had quiet the week last week. The Guardians rookie had a .438 average, 1.221 OPS, 9 runs, 10 RBI and 2 stolen bases.

Kwan also had 2 home runs last week, and the second of those was pretty spectacular. One Sunday, September 25, he hit a grand slam. Cleveland went on to win the game and clinch their division.

Earlier today, Kwan was named the American League Player Of The Week. He definitely deserved that honor, but it takes something more to win the MLBoyfriend title. Let's just say this pic shows Steven has what it takes.

Congratulations, Steven Kwan! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week. Keep up the good work, Rookie.

Joe Ryan Feat. Ryan Helsley

I was sure I had found my MLBoyfriend of the week on Tuesday, September 13. I went to Target Field that night and saw Twins rookie, Joe Ryan, give a masterful performance on the mound.

Ryan had a no-hitter going through 7 complete innings with 9 strikeouts and only 2 walks. I was one of the crowd booing the decision to send in a relief pitcher at the start of the 8th inning--even though, in retrospect, the call makes sense.

#MNTwins fans aren’t too happy about Joe Ryan being pulled… 😬 pic.twitter.com/a03isNMSuf

— SKOR North (@SKORNorth) September 14, 2022

Ryan ended the day with a 0.00 ERA (obviously), a 0.29 WHIP, a win, a quality start, and an adorably awkward interview.

Joe Ryan became the first rookie in @Twins history to complete seven innings without allowing a hit. @KatieStorm spoke with Joe after the impressive performance against the Royals. #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/49ycfz8pnd

— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) September 14, 2022

Here's the pic I took with my phone of Ryan fumbling with his answer to that last "good question".

So, case closed, right? Joe Ryan will be my MLBoyfriend. Not so fast. On Saturday, I get a message from friend of the blog, friend IRL, and lifelong Cardinals fan Seán with a nomination for the week. Former MLBoyfriend Ryan Helsley pitched an immaculate inning on Friday, September 16.

That's right. Helsley went into the game in the 9th inning and threw just 9 pitches--everyone of them a strike. It is a very rare feat in baseball. Helsley is only the third pitcher in the history of the Cardinals organization to achieve it.

The #STLCards immaculate inning club:

Gibson in '69
Isringhausen in '02
Helsley '22 pic.twitter.com/cBX0jU7BK4

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) September 17, 2022

Helsley finished the week strong with 3.0 innings pitched giving up just 2 hits and 0 walks with 6 strikeout, a 0.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and 2 save/holds. He was definitely giving Joe Ryan a run for his money.

Then, on Sunday, September 18, Ryan pitched another humdinger. 

He went 7.2 innings, giving up 3 hits, 2 walks, and no earned runs, with 5 strikeouts--giving him a second win and quality start for the week.

For the week, Ryan's stats are very impressive. Pitching 14.2 innings, he had a 0.00 ERA and 0.48 WHIP with 2 wins and 2 quality starts. Plus, it's always nice to have a fresh face on the blog. So....

Congratulations, Joe Ryan! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week.

Bo Bichette

Bo Bichette had quite the week last week.

On Monday, September 5th, Toronto played a double header against Baltimore. Bichette hit 3 home runs in the second game. He ended the day with numbers most players would be happy to have in a week: in addition to the 3 home runs, he had 3 runs, 7 RBI, 6 hits in 10 at-bats, and an astonishing 2.100 OPS.

Then, on Saturday, September 10th, Bichette hit 3 doubles in one game and had another day with a .600 average.

Bichette ended the week with 16 hits in 32 at-bats for a .500 average, a very high 1.686 OPS, 11 runs, 5 home runs, and a whopping 13 RBI (4 more than any other player in MLB). I haven't followed him closely, but I have to believe that is one of the best weeks of his career--if not the best.

Those stats aren't the only reason I'm picking Bichette this week. There's also the hair. It just looks so good when he's running the bases.

Bo's mane is better than any Breck Girl's.

He knows it too. His Instagram handle is @boflows.

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A post shared by Bo Bichette (@boflows)

Congratulations, Bo Bichette! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week. 

Xander Bogaerts

I had a busy--great, but busy--Monday today, so this post is a little late. I'm also going to keep it short and sweet like last week's. 

Xander Bogaerts is my MLBoyfriend of the week.

I'm a little surprised this is Bogaerts' first time ever winning the title. I'm sure I've considered him many times over the years, and I know he's been close many times this season. He finally put up some numbers I couldn't ignore. He had 15 hits in 28 at-bats giving him an incredible .536 average for the week and 1.402 OPS. He had 8 runs, 1 home run, 9 RBI, and a stolen base to boot.

Also, there's the whole handsome thing Xander has going on.

Congratulations, Xander Bogaerts! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week.

Mookie Betts

I'm going to keep this short and sweet because I'm headed to the Minnesota State Fair right after posting this, and I want to spend as much time with the Butter Heads as possible. Mookie Betts is back on top here at MLBoyfriend.

Betts had 9 runs, 4 home runs, 7 RBI, and 1 stolen base with a .346 average and 1.337 OPS last week. Those are some very good numbers. Plus, he has the best smile in baseball.

Congratulations, Mookie Betts! You are my MLBoyfriend of the week.