NL WILDCARD GAME: PHILLIES VS BRAVES

September 30, 2026

Alec Bohm

Bryson Stott

Truist Park

Philadelphia Phillies

Pregame Press Conference

Q. You guys have obviously been in a bunch of these games over the past few years. Does this morning feel any different than a normal game at all in any way?

BRYSON STOTT: I mean, in the sense that we know we're in the playoffs. But I don't think so. Everyone is kind of doing their same routines. Just enjoying the day so far and doing the stuff that we've done for the last eight months.

Q. Alec, were you looking for a pitch up against Sale in that first at-bat yesterday? How difficult is it to drive a ball off of him?

ALEX BOHM: I mean, honestly, I was just kind of expecting him to try to throw one as hard as he could by me, and I was just trying to not let that happen, yeah.

Q. You guys have spent a lot of time together on this team and in this city, and you've kind of bounced around the diamond a little bit and all the way through the lineup. Can you sort of reflect on -- I guess when Bryson was a rookie, it was your second year. Reflect on what it's been like being part of this ride with all these superstars? You've been part of teams that were expected to win, and you've been part of teams with MVPs and Cy Young award con senders on them. What's it been like?

ALEX BOHM: I mean, it's been a lot of fun. I think we kind of joke all the time about how we start the year hitting 5 and 6, and then we got hot and we move up in the order and he leads off and I hit 4th, and then we get cold and we move down to 7 and 8, and then we get hot again and finish right in the middle.

It's just been each year has kind of brought its own challenges, and obviously we've had a lot of success and a lot of fun, and I think it's just been, overall, a good experience for both of us, and now we're getting to be those veteran players.

BRYSON STOTT: For me, just kind of going back to the alternate site and being there together and then in '21 in Triple-A for a little bit. Each time I would go to a Spring Training, whether that was '20 or '21, and you'd look around -- and back then it was McCutchen was another MVP in the clubhouse -- and things like that. And just kind of seeing how the team has progressed into more superstars getting added over the years has been fun.

And you always can learn from guys like that no matter how many years you have under your own belt. There's always somebody in the clubhouse that's going to have more experience, seen more stuff than you have. Just being able to be around those guys and ask questions has been huge for, I think, both of us.

Q. You mentioned kind of being together in Triple-A in 2021 together. Cristopher Sanchez was a guy who was there at that time. What can you say about his evolution and the confidence you have in him as a stopper today in a must-win playoff game?

BRYSON STOTT: Yeah, at the old site me and Maton were the only two lefties there, so when Sanchez was pitching, it was always us two having to face him. That wasn't fun. When we kind of got him, he threw really hard and kind of had no idea where the ball was going. You can see it in there. He was hitting 99 with nobody in the stands. So knowing it was in there.

And then kind of seeing his velo drop and getting that sinker and start throwing strikes and becoming a good pitcher and bouncing up and down between the Big Leagues and the Minor Leagues, you knew it was only a matter of time that his velo would come back with the strike ability and the sinker and things like that.

So just kind of seeing how he's gone about it and what he's turned into has been amazing to see.

Q. For either of you guys, there were a few thousand empty seats here yesterday and it was the case for day baseball elsewhere as well. Did you take note of that? Did it surprise you? Do you think it detracted from the postseason feel?

ALEX BOHM: I don't think anybody on our team is really focused on how many people are showing up here. It's just kind of -- I think, like you said, it's a 2:00 game in the middle of the week, so I think that might have something to do with it.

That doesn't take away from what's going on on the field and kind of the stakes of all that in our minds.

Q. Obviously down 1-0, got to win two in a row, but you've got Sanchez on the mound, Nola, Wheeler, some combination of that. How confident are you to win back-to-back games and keep the season alive?

BRYSON STOTT: Yeah, obviously you want to win the first game of any series, regular season included. I think we kind of tell ourselves that we've won a series before losing the first game. Just go out and have good at-bats and go from there and have all the trust in Sanchy and whoever comes in after him. We know we have to score runs to win and keep them off the scoreboard and play good defense and just do the little things.

If you try to win the game in the first inning, it gets tough. You're playing 27 outs and you keep passing the baton to the next guy in the lineup.

Q. Alec, I think you batted close to .500 against lefties over the last two months. Did you make a specific adjustment or is it a matter of seeing the ball a little bit better?

ALEX BOHM: Yeah, I don't think there was a specific adjustment that I made. I think I did kind of just start seeing the ball a little better and got more comfortable. And I think just the overall approach against lefties, for me found kind of that happy spot where I wasn't trying to do too much and was just kind of able to find, I guess, just a combination of all the right things that was working for me. I was able to kind of stick with it and was able to get pitches to hit and execute when I got them.

Q. J. T. comes through for you big time yesterday; what does he mean in the clubhouse overall, and why do you think he's able to elevate his game when the postseason comes around?

ALEX BOHM: I think it's just kind of a testament to who he is. He's one of the more consistent people that I've ever been around in the game. And I think it's just kind of that whole thing of, like, whatever you did in the regular season doesn't matter. Obviously we all know on our side that he's better than the numbers on the scoreboard said throughout the season.

We have all the faith in the world in him to step up in big spots, and he did exactly that yesterday. It didn't end up being enough, but it was cool to see him put a good swing on Fuentes and give us a lead.

Q. You guys have seen Mahle a few times both before the trade and since the trade. Just wondering what kind of challenge he poses and how you go about attacking him, what you've seen from him in the last couple of starts?

ALEX BOHM: I definitely think he's a guy that's gotten better as the season has gone along, and since he's gotten over here, he's definitely been sharp and he's been pretty good.

I think for us, it's just kind of sticking to the plan, try to just make him throw us pitches in the heart of the zone and kind of stick to our approach and be hard-headed to that and force him to come to us, make a mistake, and what he does, we've got to find a way to do something with it.