Phillies fans can’t get enough of Bryson Stott’s walk-up song, ‘A-O-K’ by Tai Verdes
🎶 I know I’ll be A-O, A-O-K 🎶
![Bryson Stott bats against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the fifth inning in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Monday.](https://www.inquirer.com/resizer/_oqRdPOrC6YyNfg-sDIJiPXiILo=/760x507/smart/filters:format(webp)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/pmn/BRZJ2YFWGVENXB5THPVOQ6YRXY.jpg)
Whenever Bryson Stott heads up to bat, fans know to expect a sing-along moment.
The Phillies second baseman has used the popular single “A-O-K” by Tai Verdes as his walk-up track for a few seasons. But as the team continues its playoff run, the crowd sing-alongs as Stott approaches the plate appear to be getting louder and louder.
The Citizens Bank Park crowd can be heard giving a stunning serenade in a now-viral video clip of Stott hitting a grand slam against the Miami Marlins in the wild-card round earlier this month.
Now, Stott’s connection to the song seems undeniable.
Stott, the team, and their families were later seen celebrating an NLDS win at Xfinity Live! In a viral clip that began making the rounds last week, Stott could be seen dancing and singing along word-for-word to “A-O-K” alongside Liam Castellanos, the 10-year-old son of right fielder Nick Castellanos.
Even opponents can’t deny Stott selected the walk-up song of the year.
Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen marveled at the earworm on Sunday.
”[It’s the] best walk-up song in baseball, I think,” Hazen said. “The guy gets where he plays, you know? He gives the people what they want with that song.”
» READ MORE: A Phillies walk-up song playlist for Red October
When did Bryson Stott start using ‘A-O-K’ as his walk-up?
The first time Stott used “A-O-K” in the majors was in April 2022, according to The Observer.
(Multiple reports say Stott began using the song while in the minor leagues in 2020, though “A-O-K” was first released on May 5, 2021.)
Why did he pick it?
“I just liked it,” he said when asked by reporters about the reasoning. He’s since admitted that he enjoys hearing the fans sing.
“I always thought it was cool when fans would sing the walk-up songs of players when I was going to games as a kid,” Stott said, according to NJ.com. “It’s awesome. I can’t explain it, yeah, you can’t explain it. It’s amazing. I love it here. It gets me going to get into my at-bat.”
What has Tai Verdes said about his song being used as Stott’s walk-up jam?
In an interview with MLB.com, Verdes said he first saw the viral clip of Stott walking up to “A-O-K” when a friend sent it to him.
“It was just a beautiful moment,” he said. “I’ve been all over the world performing that song, and to see it in the stadium — I mean, it’s where it belongs. It’s what it was meant to do. That pitcher had no chance. No chance.”
Verdes continued, “Some of the most beautiful times in sports is when the whole crowd is vibrating on the same wavelength. It happens a lot of the time in big soccer games. ... And the chanting the crowd does in the stadium is just electric. Baseball bringing that in, and especially with my music, having it be a little bit unorthodox. It’s a little bit like ‘Sweet Caroline.’ The whole game stops because there’s like this ‘if you know, you know’ moment happening for a team.”