PHILADELPHIA -- Bryson Stott wondered how many pitches he saw on Saturday, because it felt like a lot.
It was: He saw 35.
¡°Oh, cool,¡± Stott said following the Phillies' 11-10 victory over the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park.
Stott has been producing as the Phillies¡¯ leadoff hitter since he got the nod nine days ago. On Saturday he went 3-for-5 with one double, one walk, one stolen base, two runs scored and three RBIs. He saw seven pitches while working a first-inning walk, doubled on seven pitches to score two runs in the fourth, singled on four pitches to score a run in the fifth and then singled on six pitches in the seventh.
Stott¡¯s 35 pitches were the most in a game by a Phillies player since Brandon Marsh saw 35 on Aug. 30, 2023. No Phillies player has seen more since Rhys Hoskins¡¯ 39 in seven plate appearances against Arizona on Aug. 31, 2022.
¡°Just try to see as many pitches as possible, whether it ends in a hit or not,¡± Stott said. ¡°I feel like that helps Trea [Turner] and Bryce [Harper] and Kyle [Schwarber]. Everybody. Just seeing as many as I can and hitting the mistakes.¡±
The Phillies ended up needing every run that Stott produced when Jordan Romano allowed a career-high six runs in just two-thirds of an inning in the ninth, including a pair of home runs. He had never allowed more than three runs in a game.
Romano has a 15.26 ERA in nine appearances with the Phillies this year.
Romano had his best stuff of the year, too. His fastball touched 99.8 mph and it averaged 97.0 mph, up 2.2 mph from his season average.
¡°I just got crushed,¡± he said.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson said the club will search for answers. He mentioned that when Romano entered the game, he had thrown only 10 pitches since April 12.
¡°He¡¯s a little bit rusty,¡± Thomson said. ¡°But the stuff was good. The velocity was good. We¡¯ve got to look into some other things. But I have a lot of confidence in him. He¡¯s got a great track record. As long as his stuff is good, you¡¯ve got to believe in him.¡±
Romano said he will review the video to see if he might be tipping pitches.
¡°When it¡¯s that bad, for sure,¡± Romano said. ¡°When they¡¯re putting that good of swings on it, for sure. You know what¡¯s honestly crazy to me? I went out there and I kind of executed what I wanted to do. It was just the worst result possible. I wanted to go out there, I wanted to drive the zone with my heater, throw the slider in there for strikes and I did that. Just got crushed.¡±
The Phils can only hope Romano straightens up. They need him to be an effective, high-leverage reliever.
The Phillies certainly feel better with how Stott has performed as the leadoff hitter. Thomson moved him into the spot on April 11. He is batting .310 with an .812 OPS in seven games since.
Stott entered Saturday averaging 4.73 pitches per plate appearance, which was second among all qualified hitters in baseball behind only the Dodgers¡¯ Andy Pages (4.91).
Stott is chasing fewer pitches out of the strike zone than he has in the past. He is swinging at the first pitch far less, too.
It indicates that he is feeling confident, that he isn¡¯t scared to fall behind in the count.
¡°I felt like I got myself out quite a bit,¡± Stott said. ¡°Kind of selling out and grounding out to second. So, confident in just taking those ones away and waiting for the mistakes.¡±
Phillies right-hander Taijuan Walker allowed one run in four innings. He threw only 56 pitches, but he left the game because his right shoulder tightened up during the Phillies¡¯ four-run third inning.
He said he expects to make his next start on Friday against the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Walker was just happy that Stott and the rest of the Phillies¡¯ lineup did their thing.
So was Romano.
¡°I like him there,¡± Walker said about Stott leading off. ¡°I like his at-bats. Since I've been here, just watching his at-bats, he grinds at-bats, he sees a lot of pitches. He's not afraid to get to two strikes quick. He battles and makes their pitcher throw a lot of pitches. I feel like that¡¯s a good leadoff hitter right there.¡±