A little over four years ago, Bryson Stott made his major league debut at third base.
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It was not his natural position — he had been a shortstop in college, and primarily played there through the minor leagues — but there was an opportunity at third on opening day in 2022, and so that’s where Stott found himself.
“People forget,” Stott said. “So I got some [experience]. I don’t know, four days of spring training at third, and … two games at third in my career.”
But Stott is about to get a whole lot more experience there, as the Phillies are planning to move him to third to open up second base for Luis Arraez. They acquired the infielder from the Giants on Monday along with right-handed reliever Caleb Kilian in exchange for two minor league prospects.
Interim manager Don Mattingly texted Stott on Monday morning to let him know the plan.
“I told him the same thing I’ve said for years: I don’t care. I just want to play,” Stott said.
Arraez brings a National League-leading .324 batting average, elite bat control, and a strong preference to play second base to the Phillies. He has played first base in the past, but was open about his desire to stay at second even before the Phillies began their pursuit.
“It’s probably more about him and his concerns,” Mattingly said of Arraez. “So I think that’s fair. I think Dave knew that going in that wasn’t really an option for him.”
Also shuffling positions will be Alec Bohm, who will be moving from third to first, and Bryce Harper, who will be moving from first to right field. Bohm and Harper have plenty of experience at their positions, although Harper’s last game in the outfield came in April 2022, prior to tearing his UCL.
Stott, on the other hand, only has those two games. But he doesn’t look at third much differently.
“I’m just gonna try and catch it and throw it, and not think anything much more, and make it bigger than it is, and go for it,” he said.
The main difference from third is the longer throw, which requires the infielder to throw over the top. With the shorter distance from second base, Stott is accustomed to throwing sidearm.
“I think just where I start the ball is going to be big,” Stott said. “My ball tends to carry a lot and kind of stays true. So if it starts high, it’s probably going to end up high, so just finding that starting point and going from there.”
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The only Phillies infielder not moving positions is Trea Turner, who will remain at shortstop despite a league-worst -14 defensive runs saved at the position this year. Mattingly said moving Turner off shortstop was not something the Phillies have discussed.
The Phillies’ infield as a whole has struggled this season. They have turned 65 double plays this season, tied with the Dodgers for fewest in the majors. As a collective, Phillies infielders have posted a -13 fielding run value.
By the same metrics, Arraez has been a plus defender at second base this season (+9 fielding run value), but now he’s joining a completely new-look Phillies infield.
Mattingly isn’t concerned.
“Not with Stott. Feel like he can play anywhere on the infield, honestly, and be really, really good,” Mattingly said. “So, really, no concern with him. Just makes us better, and we got to get better. We got to figure out ways to be consistent with our scoring and things like that. So I have no concern about moving them.”
Mattingly added that Harper’s willingness to move back to the outfield is “the key to this.”
Harper had already been in discussions with Mattingly and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski over the past week, repeatedly reiterating his willingness to switch positions if the right move materialized.
“It should be not lost that our superstar first baseman, two-time MVP is willing to move,” Stott said. “And when you’re on a team and you see a guy do that, what are we gonna say? ‘No, we’re not moving?’”
Extra bases
Jesús Luzardo (9-5, 3.57 ERA) is scheduled to start Tuesday opposite Nationals right-hander Zack Littell (7-8, 4.94 ERA). New acquisitions Arraez, Kilian, and reliever Brooks Raley are expected to be active Tuesday.
No matter what moves the Phillies make before the trade deadline Monday, they will have to fix some of their issues internally. Chief among them: Trea Turner’s defense at shortstop. And that’s where infield coach Bobby Dickerson comes in. Dickerson sat down with “Phillies Extra,” The Inquirer’s baseball podcast, to discuss Turner’s struggles, the problems with analytics in measuring defense, his unique coaching style, and more. Watch here.
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