Phillies ‘relieved’ Bryson Stott OK after taking pitch to elbow; tight back keeps Bryce Harper at DH

When Bryson Stott took a pitch off his left elbow in the ninth inning against the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday, Phillies manager Rob Thomson was worried.

Stott was checked out by the Phillies trainers, then stayed in the game. He scored the tying run, driven home with Brandon Marsh right on his heels by Trea Turner’s walk-off single in a 4-3 victory. Stott didn’t turn out to need any time off at all, and remained in the lineup on Wednesday, starting at second base.

“[I’m] really relieved. I thought he’d be sore today at least,” Thomson said. “But he said he feels pretty good, the training staff did a great job with it.”

» READ MORE: Phillies’ Edmundo Sosa proud of his native Panama team’s ‘special’ run in the Little League World Series

An injury to Stott would certainly be something to be worried about. He went 2-for-3 on Tuesday to record his 40th multi-hit game of the season, fifth-most in the National League.

Stott has also stood out at second base with eight defensive runs saved this season. He is responsible for 10 outs above average, according to Statcast data, a metric that measures how many more outs a player makes compared to a league-average fielder at his position. Among all MLB players, he is tied for 14th in OAA.

Stott made just one out above average as a rookie in 2022, primarily splitting time between shortstop and second base. He’s seen significant improvement since making move to second base full-time after the Phillies signed Trea Turner to play shortstop.

“I had no concerns, because [Stott] played there when [Jean] Segura got hurt last year, and he played really well,” Thomson said. “And then when we came back from the World Series, we were in here cleaning out all our stuff, and packing up so I called him in and I said, ‘If we were to go out and get a shortstop this offseason, what would your reaction be?’ And he said, ‘Doesn’t matter to me, I can play anywhere. As long as I’m playing, it doesn’t matter to me.’”

Bryce Harper was in the lineup at DH for the second straight game on Wednesday and not first base due to back tightness, which first forced him to leave a game Aug. 10. Thomson said there is no long-term concern, and the team will re-evaluate after the off-day on Thursday.

“It’s just more precaution than anything,” Thomson said. “But it’s not affecting his swing. He’s turning it loose. So I’m just trying to make sure that he keeps hitting.”