Seattle Mariners Born in
Bellville, Western Cape,
South Africa, Phillips was scouted by
Pat Kelly and Phillip Biersteker to sign with the Seattle Mariners at age 16 after his participation in the 2006 World Baseball Junior Championship. He began his professional career with the rookie-level
Arizona League Mariners. Phillips
batted .279 with 24
runs, 34
hits, 1
double, 9
RBIs and 5
stolen bases in 45 games. In the next season, he played with three levels of the Mariners' organization including the rookie-level
Pulaski Mariners, the Class-A Short Season
Everett AquaSox and the Class-A Advanced
High Desert Mavericks. With Pulaski, he batted .196 with 7 runs, 11 hits, 1 double, 4 RBIs and 4 stolen bases in 14 games. He played 51 games with the AquaSox and batted .187 with 23 runs, 28 hits, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, 17 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Finally, with the Mavericks, Phillips batted .111 with 1 hit and 1 RBI in 3 games. He hit his first career home run on 10 July against the
Tri-City Dust Devils. He spent the 2009 season with the Class-A Short Season Everett AquaSox and batted .247 with 29 runs, 59 hits, 8 doubles, 3 triples, 7 home runs, 28 RBIs and 3 stolen bases in 68 games. He was first on the AquaSox in
caught stealing (8) and second in
at-bats (239), home runs and
strikeouts (65). He began the 2010 season with the Triple-A
Tacoma Rainiers but, after just one game, he was assigned to extended
spring training.
Philadelphia Phillies Phillips signed a minor league deal with the
Philadelphia Phillies in December 2013. Over the course of the 2014 season, he played with three different teams in the Phillies' minor league system.
St. Paul Saints For the 2015 season, Phillips played for the
St. Paul Saints in the independent
American Association.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim On 23 January 2016, Phillips signed a minor league contract with the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He played in 114 games for the Double–A
Arkansas Travelers, hitting .259/.333/.317 with one home run, 37 RBI, and nine stolen bases. Phillips elected free agency following the season on 7 November.
Colorado Rockies On 10 January 2017, Phillips signed a minor league deal with the
Colorado Rockies. He was released on 15 June 2018.
St. Paul Saints (second stint) On 21 June 2018, Phillips signed with the
St. Paul Saints of the
American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. He was released on 6 August.
Kansas City T-Bones On 17 August 2018, Phillips signed with the
Kansas City T-Bones of the American Association. He hit for the Cycle to put them in the playoffs and they won the championship in 2018. He was released on 14 November 2018 ==Coaching career==