Bryson Stott watched every single playoff game during the offseason: “I didn’t know what to do”
Bryson Stott’s first full season of his professional career was nothing short of a legendary experience.
The Phillies snapped their 11-year playoff drought and found themselves six games into the Fall Classic, where as we all know, they’d fall just short to the Houston Astros in a painful final game in Texas.
The fan perspective in sports is always special. You get to live the experience from the outside looking in. You’re not the one making the decisions, making the plays, and winning the games…you get to sit back and (stressfully) enjoy the show.
Bryson Stott got to live playoff baseball in his first season in the majors, which is something that most players don’t get to experience. To put that in perspective, JT Realmuto and Jean Segura made the postseason for the first time in their careers, while there are still multiple veterans around the league that have never played in October.
I’d be lying if I said I haven’t gone back and watched highlights, full games, and more from the playoff run. You get caught up in the moment, and you almost forget to enjoy what’s going on in the present because you’re so focused on winning at all costs.
Bryson Stott sat down with Matt Gelb of The Athletic down in Clearwater and talked about the aftermath of October baseball.
“I watched every game…every game. I didn’t know what to do.
I turned it up and blasted the surround sound. Everything. Just to feel what it was like watching it. I couldn’t get through the World Series games as fast. All those good memories, but then we were, like, two minutes away. I wasn’t going to cry, but I was like, hmm, just one hit there.” – Bryson Stott
Bryson Stott realized that his swing felt lazy and tired. Stott saw 177 fastballs in the playoffs last year while reportedly only putting 20 of them into play, according to Gelb.
Stott hit just .136/.255/.227 in the playoffs, with six hits and seven strikeouts. He talked a lot with Kevin Long over the offseason and has been working heavily with the hitting coach already down in Clearwater this spring.
Hitting high fastballs isn’t an easy task, and that’s always been Stott’s weakness. He’s now constantly seeing them in the cage, on the field, and really working on his technique of driving the left hand down in the zone rather than flaring his dominant hand (right) out at the ball, which gave Stott a very horizontal swing.
The difference a year has made for Bryson Stott gives him a boosted level of confidence heading into camp and the new season. Last March, he was fighting with Alec Bohm for the last infield roster spot, even though both players ended up making the Opening Day roster.
Now, he’s the second-baseman of the future while getting to play and more importantly, learn from star shortstop Trea Turner for the next ten years.
