Tyler Phillips

Tyler Nicholas Phillips

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 5", Weight 225 lb.
• High School Bishop Eustace Preparatory School
• Debut July 7, 2024

• Born October 27, 1997 in Lumberton, NJ USA

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Biographical Information

Pitcher Tyler Phillips grew up a Philadelphia Phillies fan in the New Jersey suburbs of the City of Brotherly Love, but it was the Texas Rangers who drafted him out of high school in the 16th round of the 2015 amateur draft. Little did he know at the time that it would take him ten seasons - including two during which he did not pitch at all - to finally reach the majors - with his hometown team - in 2024.

He started off his pro career as a 17-year-old with the AZL Rangers in 2015, going 0-1, 3.60 with 1 save in 13 games as a reliever. He made slow but steady progress over the next few seasons, reaching AA by 2019 when he split the season between the Down East Wood Ducks of the Carolina League and the Frisco RoughRiders of the Texas League. It was his third straight solid season as a starting pitcher: he had gone 12-5, 2.64 in 2017; 11-5, 2.67 in 2018; and was 9-11, 3.71 that season. All three years he pitched around 130 innings and struck out over 100 batters, and he was a South Atlantic League All-Star in 2018.

Like many others in his age group, the COVID-19 pandemic came at a terrible time for his career, as he was forced to miss a year just when he was putting everything together and a major league debut was within sight (he had been added to the Rangers' 40-man roster for 2020). When the minor leagues resumed play in 2021, he couldn't really get going as he appeared for four different teams at three levels; this included a first stint in AAA, with the Round Rock Express, but it resulted in a 0-3, 9.90 record in four terrible starts. He spent time on the injured list, then was designated for assignment on July 17th. His luck was that the Phillies decided to claim him off waivers, but his arm wasn't right. He only pitched 5 games at two levels in their system before ending the year back on the injured list, needing Tommy John surgery. He was not out of the woods yet, as he was released on September 21st to clear roster space. He was re-signed by Philly the following November, but missed all of 2022 while recovering from the operation, only making it back to the mound in April of 2023, with the AA Reading Fightin Phils. He went 4-7, 4.92 in 26 games between AA and AAA, gaining back his strength and pitching 122 2/3 innings. By the end of the year, he was finally back to where he had been before the pandemic.

He started the 2024 season with the AAA Lehigh Valley IronPigs and did well, going 7-3, 4.89 in his first 15 starts. Meanwhile, the major league Phillies were doing very well, but they needed some help on the mound by the end of June and two members of the IronPigs rotation were called up in short order, first Michael Mercado, who made his debut on June 24th, then him. Mercado's second big league start, against the Atlanta Braves on July 7th, went poorly as he was chased in the 2nd inning. That created an opportunity for Tyler to come in with the game out of hand in the 5th, and he pitched the final four innings, allowing just 1 run on 3 hits. He also struck out 7 batters, which turned out to be a new record for a Phillies reliever making his major league debut. The Elias Sports Bureau claimed that the previous mark of 6 had been set by Bill Duggleby back in 1901, but while Duggleby did strike out six batters in his debut that season, he had previously pitched for the Phillies in 1898 as well, so there did not seem to be a true precedent for Tyler's performance. He then moved to the starting rotation and won his first three starts, including a complete game shutout against the Cleveland Guardians on July 27th. He made three more starts after that, none of them being particularly effective before going back to the minors. In early September, he was asked to step into Taijuan Walker's spot in the starting rotation as Walker had been ineffective of late, but his first start in the role, against the Toronto Blue Jays on September 3rd, was a complete disaster. He failed to get out of the 1st inning as he allowed 6 runs on 8 hits, including homers by Daulton Varsho and Addison Barger. The only good thing was that he escaped with a no-decision as his teammates picked him up, winning the game, 9-8, thanks in large part to a superhuman performance by Kyle Schwarber who hit three homers and drove in six runs. It was his final major league appearance of the season, as he finished the year at 4-1, 6.87 in 8 games and 36 2/3 innings. His one shutout did give him a share of the National League lead in that category.

Notable Achievements

• NL Shutouts Leader (2024)

Further Reading

• Todd Zolecki: "'Unreal': Local kid Phillips breaks 123-year-old record in MLB debut", mlb.com, July 7, 2024. [1]

Related Sites

• Tyler Phillips on mlb.com