Bryson Stott is in the Phillies’ lineup after he and his wife recently welcomed their second child

Bryson Stott asked Phillies manager Rob Thomson if he could show up to the park a little later than normal for Wednesday’s series finale against the Red Sox.

He and his wife, Dru, had just welcomed their second child.

“That’s fine,” Thomson said.

Although players are permitted to leave their teams for up to three days after the birth of a child when placed on the paternity list, Stott wanted to play on Wednesday and was in the Phillies lineup against right-hander Lucas Giolito, hitting ninth.

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Stott has been working through some struggles at the plate this month and entered Wednesday 0-for-8 on the homestand.

He has a .132 average and .237 slugging percentage in 38 at-bats in July. While Stott hasn’t been chasing or striking out very much — just three times this month, entering Wednesday — he has posted his highest ground-ball percentage (51.4%) and pop-up percentage (10.7%) of the season so far.

The problem lies in his swing, which Thomson has described as “loopy” sometimes, which makes it difficult for him to drive the ball.

“He’s got a lot of movement in his hands, so they’re trying to quiet that down,” Thomson said. “He loses his barrel when he does that. So they’re trying to quiet it down. Just start on the shoulder, lift it up, get some rhythm and go.”

Stott entered Wednesday still searching for his first hit since the All-Star break, but Thomson pointed to a well-hit lineout to center field on Monday against Boston as a good sign.

“I think he feels good with that, and I think he’s making some progress with it,” Thomson said.

Alec Bohm (fractured left rib cage) has been feeling better, according to Thomson. He will remain in Philadelphia until Sunday to get treatment, while the rest of the team heads to New York to take on the Yankees.

Bohm meet the team in the Bronx, and then will join the team for the second leg of their road trip in Chicago.

“I think by that time, he’ll start doing some functional work,” Thomson said. “Probably not swinging a bat yet, but at least play catch and maybe take some ground balls.”

The Phillies’ bullpen didn’t have much to do during Tuesday’s 4-1 win over the Red Sox, since Cristopher Sánchez dazzled for a complete-game.

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But they were technically down a man for the first four innings. Joe Ross was placed on the 15-day injured list pregame with back spasms, and Alan Rangel, who was recalled from triple-A Lehigh Valley to fill his spot on the 26-man roster, did not arrive at the park until the fifth inning.

Thomson said Ross stepped in a hole on the mound created by another pitcher on Sunday against the Angels, which “jarred his back.” According to Thomson, the move is mostly precautionary after Ross remained sore.

For now, Rangel will fill a long man role with the Phillies.

“He was kind of an emergency [on Tuesday], because he just pitched the other day,” Thomson said. “So as time goes on in the next few days, we’ll add an inning every day.”

The Phillies signed their seventh-round pick in the 2025 MLB draft, high school right-hander Matthew Fisher, for $1.25 million. The signing bonus, which lured Fisher out of a commitment to Indiana University, is the most ever for a player in the seventh round. The slot value for the 221st overall pick is $257,700.

Fisher was ranked the 46th best available prospect by MLB Pipeline ahead of the draft.

The Phillies have officially signed 17 of their 20 picks so far, and six additional undrafted free agents. The deadline for MLB clubs to sign draft selections is July 28.

After an off day on Thursday, Taijuan Walker (3-5,3.75 ERA) will start the series opener against Yankees right-hander Will Warren (6-5, 4.91) on Friday.