PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - MAY 06: Bryce Harper #3 of the Philadelphia Phillies looks on in the dugout before a game against the Athletics at Citizens Bank Park on May 06, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
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The Philadelphia Phillies earned their fourth win in a row on Wednesday, giving the team an 8-1 record since replacing long-time manager Rob Thomson with bench coach Don Mattingly.
But had Mattingly listened to his franchise slugger’s plea for a lineup change after he took over, the team might have lost their latest game.
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On Tuesday, Bryce Harper appealed to the new manager in some comments to the media when he praised teammate Bryson Stott, who logged two hits, a home run and two RBI in that game. Under Thomson, Stott was routinely benched against left-handed pitchers and Harper felt the breakout performance was evidence that the Phillies should put him in the starting lineup more regularly.
“He’s an everyday player, and when you have a guy that needs to play every day, whether it’s a lefty or righty (pitcher), it doesn’t matter,” Harper said, per NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Cole Weintraub. “When you take an everyday guy out of the lineup, it’s tougher to get it going each day. You guys have seen that over the past couple of days. I hope he (continues to get) that chance.”
But when the lineup for the Phillies’ next game was revealed, it was apparent that Mattingly didn’t agree, as Stott was absent with Edmundo Sosa starting at second base to face left-handed Athletics starter Jeffrey Springs.
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Ultimately, Sosa hit the go-ahead two-run single in the eight inning that propelled the Phillies’ win on Wednesday, while Stott logged a hit in two at-bats off the bench.
In retrospect, it seems Mattingly made the right call to ignore Harper’s lineup appeal, at least for Wednesday’s game. Though the manager was clear on how he feels about Harper’s comments when he offered a three-word response on his decision to ignore them before the game.
“I don’t mind,” Mattingly said when asked how much weight Harper’s lineup request carried, per a video shared by Crossing Broad’s Luke Arcaini.
But the manager was also clear that, in his eyes, Harper’s comments represent just one opinion among the many that he receives about how to construct the team’s lineups.
“I appreciate all of the information I get from everyone, opinions and all that,” Mattingly added. “But I’m still looking at it from the standpoint of, everybody on the bench, I know we’re going to need everybody and just doing kind of what we do.”
If the Phillies keep winning, Harper and Stott will have to remain content with Mattingly’s lineup choices.
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