March 06, 2024

Phillies 2024 preview: Bryson Stott does all the little things a contender needs

What's next for Bryson Stott as a glue guy on a championship-contending Phillies team?

By Shamus Clancy
PhillyVoice Staff

Dave Nelson/USA Today Sports

Bryson Stott is looking to break out in third big league season.

The Phillies appear to be taking the same approach in spring training as their hungry (for hot dogs?) fans are: World Series or bust.

In back-to-back seasons, the Phillies made deep and loud postseason runs but neither has yielded a third ever championship.

Philly currently carries +1500 odds to win the World Series in 2023, the sixth best odds via FanDuel. They are second to win the NL East (+330) behind the Braves but are overwhelmingly favored to make the playoffs at -250.

Before the team hits the field against the Reds at the end of March to open their 2024 campaign, we're going to take a deep dive into each positional group.

Let's take a look at second base...

The Scott Kingery That Was Promised! Bryson Stott, in 2023, wasn't a star, but was a key cog in the Phillies' well-oiled machine, being a factor at the plate, on the base paths and in the field that contributed to winning.

Stott, in his age-25 season last year, was an above-average hitter at second base for the Phils, putting up these numbers:

Category	Stats
Doubles	32
Home Runs	15
RBI	62
Steals	31
Batting Average	.289
On-Base Percentage	.329
Slugging Percentage	.419
OPS	.747
OPS+	104
bWAR	4.3

There's no more controversial stat in baseball for the past 15-or-so years than WAR, but it's a metric that's always given weight to well-rounded players who affect the game offensively, defensively and as runners. Stott does just that. He's not Chase Utley, a player who Stott's been unfairly compared to given that he's a left-handed hitter playing second with a compact swing, but he does the little things that add up on a team stacked with stars and dying for a return to the World Series.

Looking at The Fielding Bible, the standard for measuring defense in today's game, they have Stott with six defensive runs saved in 2023, which ranks seventh among all second baseman. That was second on the Phillies overall behind Johan Rojas with 15 in center field.

That's how Stott fared in 2023. What about 2024?

Here are how multiple projection models predict Stott's stats for this season:

Stat	baseball-reference	ZiPS
Runs	71	69
Steals	23	21
Doubles	27	26
HRs	14	12
RBI	60	65
Batting Average	.266	.257
On-Base Percentage	.323	.314
Slugging Percentage	.408	.382
OPS	.731	.696

stats via b-r and Fangraphs

Both projections, ZiPS in particular, are low on Stott relative to how he performed in 2023. I don't see it! Between 2022 and 2023, Stott made a leap in all of batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. His success rate on steals was higher while the volume went way up. He was great in the field. And while his playoff performance last fall left room to be desired, his 2023 postseason OPS (.620) was still way better than it was in 2023 (.420). He's on the upswing.

He did have clutch moments, too.

Stott had an instant-classic grand slam against Miami in the Wild Card Series:

A-OK is right.

Behind Stott, newly signed utility player Whit Merrifield, a three-time All-Star switching to a super-sub role on a championship contender, will spell Stott at times. Merrifield will be getting time there and elsewhere this year. Merrifield played second in 84 games in 2023 with Toronto while also playing 84 games in the outfield. He'll be a bench upgrade over what the Phils were working with last season.

As for the Phillies' future at second base, their future is, well, Stott. He's under team control through his age-29 season in 2027. The Phillies' highest-rated middle infield prospect on MLB.com's prospect rankings is 19-year-old Devin Saltiban. He played just 10 games in rookie ball last year. That's not something to worry about right now.

So... what's my projection for Stott in 2024?

I'll say he captures his first Gold Glove Award and provides a huge playoff moment or two.