Phillips came on late last spring as a Texas high school senior, turning down offers of third-round money and lasting until the Blue Jays took him in the 35th round. Originally committed to Louisiana State, he switched to McLennan (Texas) CC so he'd be Draft-eligible again as a freshman. He threw very well early in the junior college season before his command eluded him in his final two outings in March.
Phillips has a quick arm that produces 92-96 mph fastballs that peak at 98 and he already shows the ability to hold his velocity deep into games. His upper-70s curveball has good depth and shows signs of becoming a plus pitch, though he can't always land it for strikes. He'll need to refine his changeup as he faces more advanced hitters.
There's still some projection remaining in Phillips' 6-foot-2 frame, so he could add more velocity. He sometimes gets hit harder than his stuff would indicate he should because there's effort in his delivery that hampers his command, and his long arm action and high three-quarters slot allow hitters to see the ball well. He's far from a finished product but comes with plenty of upside.
The Reds and Mariners became comfortable trading partners in 2022. In July, Cincinnati sent Luis Castillo to Seattle and got Noelvi Marte and Edwin Arroyo (among others) in the return. Several months earlier, during Spring Training, they sent Eugenio Suárez and Jesse Winker to the Mariners for a number of prospects. Phillips, who was taken out of the junior college ranks by Seattle No. 64 overall in the 2020 Draft, was the player to be named in that deal. He had shown his elite-level pure stuff -- along with his struggles with command -- in his two years since the trade, making his big league debut last September. Issues with finding the strike zone got so severe in 2024, however, that the Reds sent him from Triple-A back to their complex in Arizona in June to try and straighten things out.
Even though his Major League debut was uneven, Phillips showed that his stuff can be plenty good enough to get out hitters in The Show. His fastball averaged 96 mph across three levels in 2023 -- touching 99 -- and it features high spin and big IVB, missing a good amount of bats. Both of his breaking balls can be out pitches, and one can be better than the other on any given day, though the Reds think his 11-to-5 curve -- which comes out of the same plane as his fastball with bite and depth -- is slightly better than his mid-80s three-quarters sweeping slider because he tends to locate the curve a bit better. His upper-80s changeup remains behind the other three offerings, but it can be an effective pitch at times.
The biggest thing Phillips needs to improve is his consistency within the strike zone after walking just over five per nine across all levels in 2023, and regressing from there in 2024. If he can slow his motor down and trust that his elite stuff is good enough, he has the chance to be a mainstay in a big league rotation.
As the shortened 2020 Draft approached, Phillips emerged as the top junior college arm in the class after throwing well at McClennan Community College in Texas. The Mariners liked his arm strength enough to take him in the Competitive Balance Round B, and he managed to pitch his way to High-A at the end of his first full season in 2021. He came to the Reds as the player to be named later in the Jesse Winker trade, and he split his first season in the organization between High-A and Double-A.
Phillips’ stuff is still extremely exciting, starting with a fastball that touched 99 mph and sat close to 97 mph during his time in Double-A. He has two distinct breaking balls, with his 80-mph curve a bit better than his low-80s slider, though he throws the harder breaker a bit more frequently. He has an upper-80s changeup that he needs to throw more to give hitters a different look.
The development of that pitch, something to throw to left-handed hitters at the upper levels, along with getting him to attack and compete in the strike zone, are the keys to Phillips’ future. He has the stuff to miss bats and get hitters out in the zone, but his 5.4 walk per nine rate heading into 2023 shows how much work there is to do there. The good news is that his power arsenal would play very well in a shorter relief role should it come to that, though he’s too young to pull the plug on starting yet.
More than any pitcher in the organization, Phillips is the classic high-risk, high-upside arm that leaves some scouts marveling and others uncertain. On one hand, the righty had a 32.6% strikeout rate in 2021, and on the other, a 1.477 WHIP. Elite stuff with some command issues has been the profile for the former JUCO pitcher, who the Mariners liked enough in 2020 to use their Competitive Balance Round B pick on, signing him for a full slot bonus of just over $1 million. The Reds also liked the upside, which is why he ended up as the player to be named later in the Jesse Winker trade.
With a twitchy, high-energy and fast delivery, Phillips is described as arguably the best “mover” in the organization from a biomechanical standpoint. He really pops on TrackMan models for the uniqueness of how efficient and fast his delivery is, combined with his raw stuff. His quick arm yields a fastball velocity in the 92-96 mph range with a peak of 98. His upper-70s curveball has good depth and shows signs of becoming a plus pitch, though he can't always land it for strikes. He also throws a side-to-side slider, which widens his arsenal and gives him starter potential. He'll need to refine his changeup as he faces more advanced hitters.
Phillips’ 13.7% walk rate between Low-A Modesto and High-A Everett last year was a little alarming and he continued to walk a fair amount with the Reds in 2022, though he did reach Double-A. He has the stuff to start but will need to refine that command to avoid heading to the bullpen.
Phillips was a late bloomer as a Texas high school senior in 2019, declining third-round money and lasting until the Blue Jays took him in the 35th round. Originally committed to LSU, he switched to McLennan (Texas) Community College in order to be Draft-eligible again as a freshman. He threw very well early in JUCO, and the Mariners saw enough to use their Competitive Balance Round B pick on him, signing him for a full slot bonus of just over $1 million -- a sign that Seattle sees him as a big part of its pitching pipeline.
Phillips has been described as electric, twitchy and high energy. His eccentric warmup routines have been likened to those of Trevor Bauer. His quick arm produces 92- to 96-mph fastballs that peak at 98 and he already shows the ability to hold his velocity deep into games. His upper-70s curveball has good depth and shows signs of becoming a plus pitch, though he can't always land it for strikes. He also throws a side-to-side slider, which widens his arsenal and gives him starter potential. He'll need to refine his changeup as he faces more advanced hitters.
There's still some projection remaining in Phillips' 6-foot-2 frame, so maintaining his blossoming velocity more consistently is an area he can improve upon, though the Mariners will likely want to ensure he doesn’t turn up the heat too soon. They plan to harness him rather than speed him up. Phillips sometimes gets hit harder than his stuff would indicate he should because there's effort in his delivery that hampers his command, and his long arm action and high three-quarters slot allow hitters to see the ball well. He's far from a finished product, but he wows just as much as any young pitcher in Seattle’s pipeline.
Phillips came on late last spring as a Texas high school senior, turning down offers of third-round money and lasting until the Blue Jays took him in the 35th round. Originally committed to Louisiana State, he switched to McLennan (Texas) CC so he'd be Draft-eligible again as a freshman. He threw very well early in the junior college season before his command eluded him in his final two outings in March, but the Mariners saw enough to use their Competitive Balance Round B pick on him, signing him for full a full slot bonus of just over $1 million.
Phillips has a quick arm that produces 92-96 mph fastballs that peak at 98 and he already shows the ability to hold his velocity deep into games. His upper-70s curveball has good depth and shows signs of becoming a plus pitch, though he can't always land it for strikes. He'll need to refine his changeup as he faces more advanced hitters.
There's still some projection remaining in Phillips' 6-foot-2 frame, so he could add more velocity. He sometimes gets hit harder than his stuff would indicate he should because there's effort in his delivery that hampers his command, and his long arm action and high three-quarters slot allow hitters to see the ball well. He's far from a finished product but comes with plenty of upside.
How this works:
This section shows two different ways to evaluate pitch movement.
On the left, “Total Movement” shows the real-world movement of a pitch, including the forces of gravity, which affects every pitch thrown.
Since gravity requires time, and slower pitches aren't 'better' just because they have more time to move, a pitch's movement is compared to other pitches of the same pitch type, within +/- 2 MPH and +/- 0.5 feet of extension/release.
On the right, Induced Movement (or IVB) is reported without gravity, and attempts to isolate movement created by the pitcher's ability to spin and manipulate the ball.
Note: xHR tells how many of this pitcher's home runs allowed would have been out of other stadiums. The "Adjusted" view here accounts for different wall heights, distances and environmental effects using Statcast Park Factor data.
Standard
Year
Team
Avg HR Trot
Actual HR
xHR
HR-xHR
Doubters
Mostly Gone
No Doubters
No Doubter %
2023
23.6
5
3.8
1
2
3
1
20.0
Player
23.6
5
3.8
1
2
3
1
20.0
Note: xHR tells how many of this pitcher's home runs allowed would have been out of other stadiums. The "Standard" view here accounts for different wall heights and distances but excludes environmental effects. It is based purely on the observed trajectory of the hit.
Note: xHR tells how many of this pitcher's home runs allowed would have been out of other stadiums. The "Adjusted" view here accounts for different wall heights, distances and environmental effects using Statcast Park Factor data.
Standard
Year
HR
2023
5
4
4
4
3
4
4
2
4
3
3
5
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
4
4
4
2
3
4
4
4
Player
5
4
4
4
3
4
4
2
4
3
3
5
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
4
4
4
2
3
4
4
4
Note: xHR tells how many of this pitcher's home runs allowed would have been out of other stadiums. The "Standard" view here accounts for different wall heights and distances but excludes environmental effects. It is based purely on the observed trajectory of the hit.
! Note: Shifts are through the 2022 season, Shaded starting from the 2023 season, Shift:
three or more infielders are on the same side of second base, Shade: positioned outside of
their typical responsible slices of the field. Learn more about
how positioning is defined here