‘He’s bringing him along for the ride’: Phillies rookie Bryson Stott is keeping his friend’s memory alive

Bryson Stott stopped by Citizens Bank Park on Thursday afternoon to check out his new workplace a day before the Phillies open their season.

The visit provided Stott, the team’s top prospect, a chance to get acclimated in South Philadelphia before opening day. And it offered him his first peek at his new jersey, the one with No. 5 — a tribute to his childhood best friend who died six years ago of cancer — stitched onto the back.

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“I just stopped and stared at it for a while,” said Stott, who is expected to start Friday’s opener at third base. “I kind of just held it and understood how appreciative and grateful I really am.”

Stott wore No. 10 in the minor leagues but is reaching the majors with a new digit as a way to honor Cooper Ricciardi, the fun-loving Vegas kid who always knew how to make Stott laugh while also pushing him to chase his dreams.

“I know he’s been with him every step of the way, keeping him peaceful, keeping him calm, keeping him humble,” said Cooper Ricciardi’s mother, Mary. “They’re both really humble and kind kids. It’s like Cooper is living through him. Even though he’s not here on this Earth anymore, he is because of Bryson. He’s bringing him along for the ride.”

In high school, Ricciardi wore No. 5 in basketball while Stott wore No. 10 in baseball. Ricciardi was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 15 and died three years later when the best friends were seniors at Desert Oasis High School. Ricciardi and Stott hung out everyday after school and always attended each other’s games.

Stott told Ricciardi he was headed to the NBA. Ricciardi told Stott he was going to the majors. They were two kids with big goals.

“He called it,” Stott said. “He always said I was going to do it, and it sounds cliché that your best friend is telling you that you’re going to go to the MLB and me telling him he’s going to go to the NBA and stuff like that. For it to actually come to life and it being his number, I would imagine he would shed a few tears.”

Stott first wore No. 5 last October in the Arizona Fall League, an annual showcase for baseball’s best prospects. It was there that Stott’s future seemed to become a bit clearer as Dave Dombrowski — the Phillies’ top baseball decision-maker — stopped in Arizona to tell Stott that he would compete in spring training for a major league role.

Stott, the team’s first-round pick in 2019, was looking like a big-leaguer. And he told Ricciardi’s mother he would wear No. 5 once he made it there.

“I can’t even put into words how special this is,” Mary Ricciardi said. “When you lose your son, it’s really hard. Bryson’s just such a good person and always does what he says he’s going to do. He worked so hard to get here, and for him to get that number, I feel like it’s all incredibly special and means the absolute world to me. It puts Cooper’s memory out there. Bryson will never let that not matter.”

Stott adorned his first car with a license plate that honored Ricciardi with a No. 5. He dedicated a corner of his childhood bedroom to his buddy, hanging a No. 5 on the wall atop one of Ricciardi’s old basketball jerseys. And now it will be on his back in the majors.

“It’s been manifesting for a while,” Mary Ricciardi said. “I told him, ‘It’s your number. It’s supposed to be your number. You’re going to excel in this number, and you’re going to do so well.’ He’s ready. It’s time to go show them.”

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Added Stott: “She told me she loves me and how proud she was of me. I’m kind of like her son. Obviously, no one will ever replace Cooper, but she’s a super woman and a mom to his best friends.”

Mary Ricciardi texted Stott’s mom Shana “50,000 times a day” during spring training as she tried to get a pulse on Stott’s chances to leave Clearwater, Fla., with the Phillies. Stott played just 10 games last season in triple A, but he proved in spring training that he deserved to start in the majors.

First, he would need a new number as he wore No. 73 — a high digit reserved for players not yet on the team — during camp.

The Phillies learned over the offseason about Stott’s desire to wear No. 5 and told him they would do their best to make sure it was available when he reached the majors. The two free-agent hitters the team signed this winter — Nick Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber — claimed other numbers. Stott was relieved. Everything seemed to be falling into place.

Then he ended spring training by making the team. And his buddy’s number was waiting for him in South Philly. On Friday, Stott becomes a major-leaguer. Just like Cooper Ricciardi said he would.

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“It’s crazy that it all worked out,” Stott said. “Just being on the opening-day roster is big, and obviously it doesn’t matter what number you wear as long as you’re in the big leagues, but to have five still be available and to get five and to honor my friend because this was his dream as much as it was my dream. It feels like he’s going to be with me at all times — even more so that I get to represent his family.”