Bryson Stott Is Doing Something At An Elite Level
Bryson Stott has not been perfect in his rookie season. In fact, it started out kind of poorly. He hit just .188 in the first half of the season. Stott struggled to the point that the Phillies sent him down early in the year. But he eventually was called back up, and once Rob Thomson was named interim manager, he gave Stott a regular role in that lineup, despite the struggles. And through those struggles, Stott started to break out. He is hitting .299 now since the All-Star Break. And there is one thing Stott is now doing at an elite level that we can thank for his emergence.
Bryson Stott does not strike out. His strikeout rate is 7th in the MLB since the All-Star Break. He strikes out at a rate of just .097. That means about 91% of the time, he is putting the ball in play. It can be undersold how elite of a level that is. Even in a short period of time. He puts the ball in play at a similar rate to Jose Altuve.
The power still isn’t quite there. But if he keeps putting this many balls in play, he will accidentally get some hits. The league average batting average on balls in play is at around .300. If he puts 93% of balls in play he can hit .280ish even if his BABIP is average or below average. Balls will find their way onto the outfield grass. And with his speed, he has a chance to turn ones that stay in the infield into hits too. Even if his power never develops, he can get hits if he keeps putting balls in play like this.
Stott has all the makings of a quality Major League Player. Very few guys can say they do any one thing at an elite level. Stott can say he puts balls in plays at an elite level. That is something to build on.
