Heath Phillips
| Heath Phillips | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Free agent | |||
| Pitcher | |||
|
Born: March 24, 1982 Evansville, Indiana | |||
| |||
| MLB debut | |||
| September 5, 2007, for the Chicago White Sox | |||
| MLB statistics (through 2008 season) | |||
| Win–loss record | 1–1 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.86 | ||
| Strikeouts | 2 | ||
| Teams | |||
Heath Michael Phillips (born March 24, 1982 in Evansville, Indiana) is a pitcher who is currently a free agent. He bats and throws left-handed.
Heath was a member of the Team USA Olympic Qualifier 2006 team that won gold in Cuba. His teammates included Billy Butler, Kurt Suzuki, Michael Bourn, Mark Reynolds and was managed by Davey Johnson.
Heath is now a coach in the prestigious Scorpions Baseball Travel Program. He is the pitching coach for Shorter University in Georgia.
Education
He graduated from Evansville Central High School in 2000. He attended Lake City Community College in Florida.
In college, he went 7-6 with a 3.09 ERA and 117 strikeouts in 2001. As a designated hitter, he batted .324 with 6 home runs and led the state in doubles (24) and RBI (68).
Draft and minor leagues
He was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the 2000 Major League Baseball Draft in the 10th round as the 292nd overall pick. He did not sign with the White Sox until May 12, 2001.
In 2006, Phillips played the whole season with the Triple-A Charlotte Knights. He was named the International League's Most Valuable Pitcher after going 13-5 with a 2.96 ERA.
In 2007, Phillips began the year at Charlotte again. He finished the season going 13-7 with a 4.30 ERA in 28 starts. He was rewarded with a September callup after the minor league season was over when rosters expanded.
Major league career
In Phillips' first two major league games, which were relief appearances, he got a win and a loss. Phillips made his major league debut on September 5, 2007, against the Detroit Tigers. He got the loss against the Tigers when he came into the game in the bottom of the 11th inning. He had two outs when he gave up the game winning single to Timo Pérez. In his second career game, on September 7, Phillips got the win against the Minnesota Twins. He had once again pitched in the extra innings, this time coming into the game in the top of the 13th inning. He pitched just that inning as the White Sox won the game in the bottom of the 13th inning.
On January 5, 2008, he signed a minor league deal with the New York Yankees. He was released by the Yankees on July 19, 2008. On July 29, 2008, Phillips signed a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays and became a free agent at the end of the season. On December 17, 2008, he signed a minor league contract with the Kansas City Royals.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)