Phillies late-inning capped by two players turning a corner

The Philadelphia Phillies picked up their fifth straight win on Monday thanks to a solid starting pitching performance from right-hander Andrew Painter and second baseman Bryson Stott's game-winning home run. Interim manager Don Mattingly allowed his rookie right-hander to go an inning and seven pitches more this start than his last, which proved to add to Painter's confidence level. 

Painter has become more trusting of Mattingly's decisions and looks forward to the Phillies winning as a team rather than his individual successes. 

“I trust every move that's being made out here,” Painter said to MLB.com's Paul Casella. “I just want to help the team win, and whatever that is, it's what I'm willing to do.”

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Painter showed more consistency with getting his pitches in the strike zone; 44 of his 69 pitches were strikes. Despite not factoring in the decision, the 23-year-old received a compliment from Stott, who said once Painter figures out, he had "elite stuff," Phillies fans should see a lot more outings like Monday nights. 

“He looks really good,” Stott said to Casella. “He's got elite stuff, and I think once he knows that, I think you'll see a lot more outings like this.” 

The Philadelphia Phillies' offense came up when they needed to

After only scoring two runs in the first off left-hander Nick Lodolo, who got sharper as the game went on, and one in the sixth inning, the Phillies' late-inning comeback was led by Stott, who has swung a better bat as of late. In his last seven games, Stott is batting .292 with a .958 OPS and has two home runs in back-to-back games. 

Stott knew he had at least a double off the bat, telling Casella that when he looked up at the board as he rounded first, he saw his launch angle of the ball was at 44 degrees.

“When I was going to first, I saw the exit velo board said 44 degrees,” Stott said. “So I was hoping for a double at that point.”

With Stott getting himself going and third baseman Alec Bohm also swinging a hot bat -- Bohm broke the 2-2 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning with a 409-foot shot to center field -- the Phillies lineup has gotten "deeper," as Mattingly put it. 

“With the lineup, the deeper it gets, the more guys who are contributing, it takes pressure off the top,” Mattingly said to Casella. “Those guys are going to carry the load for the most part, but if you're going to have a good year, you need everybody kind of having good years.”

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