Former two-way major leaguer Brett Phillips signed with the Kane County Cougars on May 9, prior to the start of the 2025 American Association regular season.
May 9 Transaction: @KCCougars signed RHP Brett Phillips (@brett_phillips8).
Phillips joins Kane County after spending 7 seasons in the majors with the #Brewers, #Royals, #Rays, #Orioles and #Angels.https://t.co/xb86C1cWI7 pic.twitter.com/G0aGWvjMv1
— American Association (@AA_Baseball) May 10, 2025
Phillips also signed with the Cleburne Railroaders for the 2025 American Association regular season on May 1, prior to changing his mind to play with the Kane County Cougars.
April 30 Transaction: @crrbaseball signed RHP Brett Phillips (@brett_phillips8).
Phillips joins Cleburne after spending 7 seasons in the majors with the #Brewers, #Royals, #Rays, #Orioles and #Angels. pic.twitter.com/npQeIlEtxk
— American Association (@AA_Baseball) May 1, 2025
Phillips originally signed with the Piratas de Campeche for the 2025 Liga Mexicana de Beisbol regular season on March 25, 2025, before deciding to play back in the United States.
Phillips has not yet pitched in a game with the Kane County Cougars in the 2025 season.
The 3-0 Kane County Cougars will play on the road on May 12 against the 2-1 Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks at 8:02 p.m. EDT at Newman Outdoor Field in Fargo, N.D.
The 30-year-old left-handed slugger from Seminole, Fla., was selected in the sixth round out of Seminole High School and signed with the Houston Astros in the 2012 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft after withdrawing from playing at North Carolina State University.
Phillips played seven seasons in the majors with the Milwaukee Brewers from 2017-18, Kansas City Royals from 2018-20, Tampa Bay Rays from 2020-22, Baltimore Orioles in 2022, and the Los Angeles Angels in 2023.
Phillips offensively across his seven MLB seasons carried a lifetime average of .187, playing in 395 games with 971 plate appearances, collecting 160 hits, 25 doubles, nine triples, 31 home runs, 99 RBI, 39 stolen bases, 95 walks, 376 strikeouts, and a .619 OPS.
Last season, Phillips signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox on January 8, 2024, and was assigned to Triple-A Charlotte on the same day.
In the 2024 Cactus League season, Phillips played in 22 games and batted .250/.308/.458 with 24 at-bats, six hits, two doubles, one triple, three RBI, one walk and 10 strikeouts prior to the start of the Triple-A season.
Phillips played in 17 games with Triple-A Charlotte and hit .120/.228/.280 with 57 plate appearances, six hits, three doubles, one triple, one home run, seven RBI, three stolen bases, seven walks and 27 strikeouts before being released on May 4, 2024.
The New York Yankees signed Phillips to a minor league contract on July 30 and assigned him to the Development List for Low-A Tampa on August 1.
He began transitioning from outfielder to pitcher after being released by the White Sox and joining the Yankees organization.
According to his Baseball Reference profile, Phillips reached 97 mph with his fastball during an appearance at the National Baseball Congress World Series that July, and also showcased a promising slider—prompting the Yankees to offer him a deal.
Phillips pitched in one game for the Low-A Tampa Tarpons at home against the Dunedin Blue Jays on September 5, allowing two hits, five earned runs, one hit batter and two walks. He did not appear in another game for the remainder of the year.
Phillips elected free agency on November 4 prior to signing with the Cleburne Railroaders.
He has pitched in five Major League games with Tampa Bay in 2021 and 2022, Baltimore in 2022, and the Los Angeles Angels in 2023. He has a lifetime ERA of 15.19 over 5.1 innings, allowing 12 hits, nine earned runs, three home runs, five walks, no strikeouts and one balk.
Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Brett Phillips (35) throws during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif., Tuesday, May 10, 2022. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
