1st-rounder Stott signs with Phils, introduced

June 27th, 2019

PHILADELPHIA -- Bryson Stott hopes to follow the paths of Adam Haseley and Alec Bohm as fast-moving first-round Draft picks in the Phillies’ Minor League system.

The Phillies selected Stott with the 14th overall pick in the 2019 Draft. He inked a $3.9 million signing bonus on Thursday. Stott is the third consecutive college position player Philadelphia has selected in the first round of the Draft. Stott played shortstop at UNLV. Bohm, whom the Phils selected with the third overall pick last year, played third base at Wichita State. Haseley, whom they selected with the eighth pick in 2017, played outfield at the University of Virginia.

“To be there one day is obviously the goal,” Stott said, referring to his morning tour of Philadelphia's clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park.

He could get there relatively quickly. Stott, who spends his offseasons occasionally watching college football at Bryce Harper’s house, hit .356 with 10 home runs, a .486 on-base percentage, a .599 slugging percentage and a 1.085 OPS as a junior. He is expected to begin his professional career with the Rookie-level GCL Phillies but move quickly to Class A Short-Season Williamsport.

It is the way it went for Haseley and Bohm. Haseley played three games in Rookie ball in 2017 before moving to Williamsport. He played 37 games there before finishing the season at Class A Lakewood. Bohm played 11 games in Rookie ball last summer before moving to Williamsport.

Haseley made his big league debut in June. Bohm just got promoted to Double-A Reading.

“I don't want to put that kind of pressure on him or any other player,” Phillies assistant general manager Bryan Minniti said about Stott’s ability to be a fast mover.

“At the end of the day, these guys dictate their own path. Whatever he does, we'll move him accordingly. If he needs more time at a certain level, he'll get it, just like any of our other players. I don't want to put that on him. If you look around a Major League clubhouse, every guy has a different timeline. I don't want to put any sort of timeline on him. It'll work itself out over time. When he's ready to move to a different level, we'll get him moving.”

Does Stott have a timeline for himself?

“Just get better every day and see where it goes from there,” he said.

“This is a great fit for Bryson and a great fit for the organization,” Stott’s agent, Scott Boras, said. “Who he is as a player really says a lot about what you would expect a Philadelphia shortstop to be.”