On his birthday, Bryson Stott rewards Phillies' belief in him with clutch late-inning hit
The belief has always existed that Bryson Stott would come through in the biggest of moments.
The data showed otherwise if one counts the 2024 season as a whole. Stott hit just .245 with a .671 OPS, hitting 11 home runs and driving in 57 runs this season, a far cry from where he was a year ago. The numbers were even worse with runners in scoring position, as Stott hit just .229 with a .589 OPS with runners in scoring position.
Stott's start to the postseason wasn't in his favor either. He was one for six through 16 innings of the National League Division Series against the New York Mets, with his only contribution at the plate getting thrown out on the base paths after delivering a single.
With Bryce Harper at third, Nick Castellanos at first and the Phillies trailing by a run, it was time for Stott to deliver. The Phillies certainly knew Stott had an at-bat in him that would change the course of the series.
"The moment didn't get too big there," Kyle Schwarber said. "The numbers would say he's up-and-down, right? I feel like watching him throughout the whole year, the work that he put in, the results he got might be bad luck. He was a guy who just kept going and was able to come up in a really big spot. I don't think any of us were shocked by the result."
Stott's two-run triple in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Phillies the lead was the breakthrough hit they needed to regain control of the series. Even if that wasn't the winning hit that equalized the series, it gave the Phillies' offense the jolt it needed to come through after the Mets tied it again in the ninth.
"When Stott's going, that's a huge part for us," Schwarber said. "He brings a dynamic to the basepaths. He's a great baserunner, too. He's a guy that can drive in runs."
Stott certainly was waiting for his chance to come through for this offense. Phillies manager Rob Thomson gambled Stott hitting fifth when Alec Bohm was benched, again showing his belief Stott would come through for them.
When Stott hit third base and was pounding his chest, that was when the faith was rewarded.
"That's big for him," Thompson said. "I thought his at-bats were good today. He actually swung on a first-pitch fastball, which I like to see every once in a while. He worked counts and didn't chase hardly at all. And then he comes through with a great at-bat on the triple, line drive down the line. I was really happy with him."
The confidence never wavered in Stott either, even when he had two called strikes against him. Facing Mets closer Edwin Diaz with the game on the line, Stott knew what was coming.
"You have to be ready for 100," Stott said. "And [I've] faced him in the past, and with two strikes, he's throwing me heaters. Early in the year, it was a heater. Then, two strikes, it was a slider again. So you're kind of on time. If you're on time for the heater, you can adjust on the slider. He needs to leave it up. Obviously, when he throws it down, then it's hard. Looks like a fastball for a long time. That one stayed up. That was good."
The Phillies have stayed with Stott the entire season, knowing he would come through for them when they needed it most — on his birthday, no less.
A birthday Stott will never forget.
"Pretty close to the top," Stott said. "Probably the top. That was fun."