Phillips was born in
Allenport, Pennsylvania on November 9, 1868. At the age of twenty-one, Phillips broke into the big leagues on August 11, 1890, playing his first ten games for the
Pittsburgh Alleghenys. Five days later, on August 16, 1890, Phillips, pitching against the
Chicago Colts, gave up two
grand slam home runs in the same inning. As a player, he pitched for seven seasons in the majors. In 1895, he came back to play eighteen more games for the
Cincinnati Reds. In
1899, he went 17–9 on a team that featured nineteen-year-old rookie
Sam Crawford and manager
Buck Ewing. Phillips played for the Reds from 1899 to 1903, playing his last game on September 22. In a game against the Reds in 1900, Phillips punched
Roy Thomas after Thomas fouled off twelve pitches in a single at-bat in the eighth inning. Phillips managed the
1914 Indianapolis Hoosiers to the
Federal League pennant. His top hitter was
Benny Kauff and the top pitcher was
Cy Falkenberg. Later he and
Bill McKechnie managed the Newark Pepper, finishing the
1915 season fifth in the Federal League. ==Death and interment==