In the bottom of the sixth inning of Saturday's game between the Phillies and Marlins at Lawndepot Park, Stott hit a 2-on-2 sinker past first base and down the right field line for a bases-loaded triple in the sixth inning. That gave the Phillies (28-12) a three-run lead on a day they played without their other best hitter in the lineup. Trea Turner has been on the IL since last weekend due to a left hamstring strain. On Saturday, they played without Kyle Schwarber, who is suffering from a back injury.
“It's a perfect storm right now,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “We're winning because players who don't usually play performed well.”
Marlins left-hander Jesus Luzardo held the Phillies scoreless through five innings for the first time since a shutout loss in St. Louis on April 9. However, Whit Merrifield, who was the leadoff batter in Schwarber's place, hit a double with one out, hitting left. JT Realmuto's single scored Merrifield, tying the game at 1.
Marlins relief pitcher Anthony Maldonado loaded the bases in place of Stott, who had not been feeling well lately. According to Statcast, Maldonado's two-two inside sinker was 1.464 feet from the center of home plate. Since Statcast began tracking in 2015, there have only been three hits farther inside by Phillies left-handed hitters.
“I know it worked,” Maldonado said.
At that moment, Stott didn't expect the pitch to be that far inside.
“Then Schwarber was like, 'Oh my god, did you see that?'” Stott said. “So it was kind of crazy watching that. I do that sometimes. I think my first triple of the year was a pitch similar to that one. Honestly, it might have been the same pitch. Two strikes. , trying to get the ball up and take a good swing.”
Through April 27, Stott was batting .210 with one home run, 10 RBIs, and a .559 OPS. However, his past performance was a .375 batting average (12-for-32), three doubles, one triple, two home runs, 13 RBIs, and a 1.219 OPS. 10 games.
He's been swinging and missing less lately. He chased less. And he's hitting the ball harder.
Until April 27th:
• Whip rate: 22.9 percent
• Tracking rate: 29.4 percent
• Hard hit rate: 27.3 percent
• Expected batting average: .210
From April 28th (starting on Saturday):
• Whip rate: 13.4 percent
• Tracking rate: 20.0 percent
• Hard hit rate: 45.5 percent
• Expected batting average: .354
“Sometimes when you take a good swing on a bad pitch, something can happen,” Stott said. “Sometimes when you take a bad swing on a good pitch, something happens. I think I've always liked the inside of the ball. I know my chase numbers are bad on the inside part of the plate. I'm an inside corner. I like to swing with it, and I think that's what the reports say, so I watch it a lot. But it was good that I was able to keep the ball fair, especially in that situation.”
Stott's big hit was enough for Phillies right-hander Taijuan Walker, who allowed eight hits, one walk, and one run, with four strikeouts in six innings. Walker has been pleased with his first three starts since the start of the season on the IL.
“Everything feels good,” Walker said. “I'm still getting a feel for the splitter, but the slider, cutter, and two-seam feel really good.I feel like I was in a great position.I feel like I've figured out what type of pitcher I am. We have a really good defense. I just let them put the ball in play and the defense helps me a lot.”
Walker threw just 16 splitters (19%) on Saturday after throwing more than any other pitcher last year (33.2%). He thinks he can regain his senses.
“I just want to be comfortable doing everything, so if I can't use a cutter or slider that day, I keep a splitter in my back pocket,” Walker said.
Stott singled off Nick Castellanos from second base in the eighth inning, sparking another four-run rally.
At that time, he hit a cutter into the right field seats.
“There are certain pitches that I think are going to chop to first base or something like that early in the year,” Stott said. “It's just the little things. When I'm having a bad day, I hit a lot of balls to first base. My mistakes are flares to left or cue balls to the first baseman. So I try to stay in the important parts of the field more. I’m just trying to get back there.”
