It’s just a Stott away
Bryson Stott (PHI): 2-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
Down to their final four outs and trailing 5-1, things weren’t looking great for the Phillies when Bryson Stott stepped to the plate for the fourth time last night. Making matters worse, Edwin Uceta jumped ahead in the count 1-2. However, Stott got a fastball on the inner half of the plate and smoked it to deep right for a three-run shot (409 feet, 104.2 EV). Stott didn’t swing for the fences again in the tenth after the Phillies had taken the lead, but showed his versatility by dropping a bunt, which allowed Brandon Marsh to advance to third. Trea Turner followed with a single to center, putting the Phillies ahead 7-5. The insurance run proved important as the Rays scored a run in their half of the tenth on a single by Danny Jansen.
Stott led off for the Phillies 10 times last year. Last night was his 20th game of the season from the leadoff spot. He entered the night with a career .257 batting average and a .306 wOBA with 38 home runs across 1,817 PA. He’s never walked at a 10% clip and seems, on paper at least, somewhat miscast.
However, he seems to have changed his plate approach with the new assignment; his swing aggression is down over 10% relative to last year. That’s a pretty huge jump down and might put him at risk of being too passive, ie, letting good pitches to hit go by. Pitchers will be quick to adjust, challenging him in the zone and putting him behind the eight ball. Uceta nearly did that last night, jumping ahead with a first-pitch fastball for a called strike. Stott took Uceta’s second pitch, another fastball for a ball, but he probably got lucky and could’ve easily been staring at an 0-2 count that could’ve changed the tenor of the at-bat. Regardless, Stott gave the Phillies the jolt they needed; give him credit.
Some players have an innate combination of strike zone knowledge and spin recognition that allows them to be ideal leadoff hitters. Others have to force the issue a little bit, intentionally leaving the take sign on while abandoning their natural approach, and get caught in the middle, so to speak. I guess it’s sort of like jamming your foot inside the wrong shoe; it might seem alright for a split second, but then you stumble when you try to take a step. It’ll be interesting to see how Stott adjusts.
Let’s see how the other hitters did Thursday:
Rafael Devers (BOS): 2-3, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB, SB.
After plating Ceddanne Rafaela in the fifth with an RBI single to center, Devers stepped to the plate in the seventh and swatted a fastball on the outer third from lefty reliever Jacob Latz over the Monster for his sixth longball of the season. Devers entered yesterday afternoon with a .353 wOBA, a few points off his career mark of .359. Overall, his contact ability has plummeted from 92 to 77 this year, according to PLV. His strikeout rate is up to 26.6%, just shy of his career-high of 27% back in 2020. You might recall that Devers began the season with a ton of strikeouts, but he’s been slowly trending in the right direction. And, yes, he registered his first stolen base of the year in the fifth, on a called strike from Jack Leiter to Alex Bregman, beating a throw to second from Tucker Barnhart. If history holds true, we can expect somewhere between two to four more thefts from the lefty-hitting speed demon when the season is said and done.
Maikel Garcia (KCR): 2-5, 3B, 2 RBI.
With two down and runners on second and third in the fifth, Garcia crushed a 3-2 sweeper from righty reliever Mike Vasil to the foot of the wall in deep left-center for a three-run triple. It was quite a shot at 412 feet. Garcia posted a .270 wOBA last season, the worst among qualifiers. But give him credit; he entered yesterday’s game with a .390 wOBA. He has also trimmed his strikeout rate from 16.5% to 13.9%. Garcia has hit leadoff just four times thus far, but I wonder if he might earn his way back to the top, considering Jonathan India, who went 2-for-4 with a double, has not done much save walk at a 12.8% clip.
Bobby Witt Jr. also had a decent day at the office, going 4-for-5 with two doubles and two stolen bases during the Royals’ 10-0 shellacking of the White Sox. Ho hum.
Brooks Lee (MIN): 1-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI.
Not the most exciting line, but Brooks Lee has registered a hit in eight of his last ten games. He hit .308 with a .417 wOBA across 25 games with Triple-A St. Paul last year and could be a decent MI option for deep leaguers. He hit third yesterday and has started 18 games at third base, six at second, and two at short.
Spencer Torkelson (DET): 2-4, 2B, R, 3 RBI.
With runners on the corners and two down in the second inning, Torkelson smashed a 1-1 knuckle curve from Kyle Freeland into the left field corner, putting the Tigers ahead 7-0. He also had an RBI single in the first inning of the first game. He added three more hits in the nightcap, including another double. Would you believe it? The Rockies lost both. Brutal. The righty first baseman has been one of the season’s big surprises and entered last night’s Coors Field bloodletting with a .377 wOBA, 25th among qualifiers. PLV is a big believer in Tork’s resurgence, grading his power at 132, about two standard deviations above the league average of 100. His 360 NFBC ADP is looking like a pretty decent bargain.
Colt Keith (DET): 2-5, HR, R, 2 RBI.
I almost feel bad for the Rockies, but they leave us no choice. The fortunate news for Rockies right-hander Tyler Kinley is that he had the hardest pitch of the nightcap at 96.7. Now for the not-so-good news regarding Kinley. He also surrendered the longest flyball of the evening, thanks to Colt Keith, who unloaded on a hanging slider, and sent it 450 feet to the second deck in right (109.2 EV). Yes, that was Keith’s longest homer thus far. The 23-year-old lefty entered Thursday hitting just .207 with a .318 wOBA. However, he’s now gone yard in three of his last six games.
The Tigers scored three touchdowns yesterday at Coors, so more than a few had a big day. Although Trey Sweeney is worth mentioning, he went 4-for-8 with four runs scored and has hit safely in all but two games during the Tigers’ current ten-game road stretch.
Yandy Díaz (TB): 1-5, HR, R, 3 RBI.
With two runners aboard, one down, and the Rays nursing a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the seventh, Díaz drilled a changeup from lefty reliever Tanner Banks for his sixth home run of the year. The 362-foot flyball demonstrated how the Rays could benefit from playing at George M. Steinbrenner Field, as it would have been a dong in just seven other parks, including, of course, Yankee Stadium. Díaz has been underwhelming so far, and entered play last night hitting .257 with a career-low .310 OBP. Still, I wouldn’t want to bet against him based on his track record and knowing that he could swat a few more cheap home runs at the Rays’ temporary new home.
Gabriel Moreno (ARI): 3-4, HR, R, 4 RBI.
Moreno limped into last night’s game against the Dodgers, hitting just .230 with a .273 wOBA. He also hadn’t homered in 2025. Well, so much for that. The righty-hitting catcher stepped to the plate in the fourth with the bases juiced and launched a 2-0 sinker from Yoshinobu Yamamato 376 feet to left, breaking a scoreless tie. Moreno earned plenty of prospect prestige during his time with the Jays before being swapped for Daulton Varsho in the 2022 offseason, primarily for his exceptional bat-to-ball skills. He hit .266 with a 14.8% strikeout rate and .325 wOBA last season across 351 PA and remains a notable, third-year breakout candidate. Maybe this gets him going.
Ketel Marte also hit his first homer of the year, a line drive to right off Yoshinobu Yamamato in the fifth (380 feet, 108.6 EV).
Rece Hinds (CIN): 2-3, 2B, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB.
Injuries to Austin Hays and Jake Fraley, who is day-to-day with a calf injury, have pressed Rece Hinds into duty. He went 0-for-3 on Wednesday, but came up huge last night, swatting a go-ahead, two-run dinger in the ninth on a 0-2 slider from Raisel Iglesias (407 feet, 107.6 EV). You might remember Hinds for his brief cup of coffee last year, during which he swatted five dingers across 51 plate appearances. Needless to say, Hinds has tremendous power, but has struggled with contact; the big righty had hit eight home runs but also a 29.7% strikeout rate in Triple-A prior to his promotion. Hays could potentially return Friday, so Hinds’ stay might be very short. Still, that was one heck of a home run. Unfortunately for the Reds, they couldn’t convert it into a win.
Michael Harris (ATL): 3-5, 3B, 2 RBI.
Harris entered last night’s game hitting .216 with a .246 wOBA and hasn’t hit leadoff since April 30th. Rightfully so, considering his swing-at-everything approach remains less than desirable, to say the least. Instead, we’ve been treated to an Alex Verdugo revival tour. Nonetheless, Harris sparked magic last night, punching a cutter from Graham Ashcraft through the left side of the infield for a game-tying single in the ninth. Earlier in the fifth, he gave the Braves a 2-1 lead with an RBI triple to right off lefty Nick Lodolo. Harris remains a volatile but must-roster player thanks to his speed and presence in a loaded lineup that will boast Ronald Acuña Jr. in the not-too-distant future.
Taylor Ward (LAA): 1-3, HR, R, 2 RBI.
Ward hit .246 with 25 home runs and posted a .325 wOBA last season. He also had a rock-solid PLV profile, showing good swing decisions and power. All in all, he seemed like an excellent draft-day bargain. But, alas, that has not been the case. The 31-year-old righty entered last night’s contest against the Jays, hitting a woeful .180 with a .260 wOBA. At the very least, he’s popped eight home runs, last night’s coming courtesy of a sweeper from Chris Bassitt. Still, it’s hard to be excited by Ward right now, especially considering he’s striking out at a 28.2% clip, his worst since becoming a starter three years ago.
Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X)
