Jason Lloyd Phillips (born September 27, 1976) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

player and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He is the bullpen coach for the

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the Double ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Eastern League. He played as a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catcher ...

and

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the major ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

for the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major leagu ...

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brookly ...

, and

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

Playing career

Jason made his major league debut with the

on September 19, . In , Phillips was tried out at first base and was also a backup catcher to

Mike Piazza Michael Joseph Piazza ( ; born September 4, 1968) is an American former professional baseball catcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1992 to 2007. He currently serves as the manager of the Italian national baseball te ...

. That season he broke out, batting .298 with 11

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...

s and 58

RBI RBI most often refers to: *Reserve Bank of India *Run batted in RBI may also refer to: Organisations *Radio Berlin International *Raiffeisen Bank International *Reed Business Information *Restaurant Brands International *Ruđer Bošković In ...

. In , his offensive numbers dropped sharply, but through the entire season he only made one

error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'. In statistic ...

. On March 20, , he was traded to the

for

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, who attempts to e ...

Kazuhisa Ishii Kazuhisa Ishii (石井一久 ''Ishii Kazuhisa'') (born September 9, 1973) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher and current manager and general manager for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He p ...

. His offensive production improved slightly, and he recorded a career high in starts and games as a backstop. On January 3, , Phillips signed a

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in N ...

contract with the

. He also received an invitation to

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

where he and

Guillermo Quiróz Guillermo Antonio Quiroz (; born November 29, 1981) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball catcher. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox a ...

were slated to compete for the backup catching job behind incumbent starter

Gregg Zaun Gregory Owen Zaun (; born April 14, 1971) is an American baseball analyst, public speaker and a former professional baseball catcher. He played for nine teams over 16 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1995 until 2010, winning a World Series ...

. However, with the signing of Bengie Molina, it seemed unlikely that either of them would get the backup spot. Quiroz was later claimed off waivers by the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

, and Phillips started the season with the team after Zaun was put on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

. A few days into the regular season, Phillips was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the play ...

on April 7, a day before Zaun came off the disabled list. On April 12, Phillips was outrighted to Triple-A

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States * Syracuse, New York ** East Syracuse, New York ** North Syracuse, New York * Syracuse, Indiana *Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, M ...

. After

Shea Hillenbrand Shea Matthew Hillenbrand (born July 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and first baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Gia ...

was traded in July 2006 to the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

, Phillips was recalled to fill the void in the roster. He was soon outrighted again to Syracuse for Francisco Rosario. Never known for his speed on the basepaths, Phillips was picked as the slowest active ballplayer by using a formula based on Bill James' speed scores by the Hardball Times in April 2006. Upon Bengie Molina's departure through free agency to the

in the winter of , Phillips once again became the Jays' backup catcher and occasional reserve infielder. He was released on July 20, 2007. He was only batting .208 with a home run and 12 RBI. He would spend 2007 and 08 playing minor league and independent league baseball. He was invited to the

2009 spring training camp.

Coaching career

On April 1, 2009, Phillips accepted the Mariners' bullpen catcher position, after his services as a player were no longer required. Before the start of the 2016 season, Phillips joined the Toronto Blue Jays as one of their bullpen catchers. In 2019, the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one o ...

named Phillips the bullpen coach for the

of the

Eastern League.

References

External links

Jason Phillips Camden Riversharks Player Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Jason 1976 births Living people Albuquerque Isotopes players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from California Binghamton Mets players Camden Riversharks players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball bullpen catchers Major League Baseball first basemen New York Mets players Norfolk Tides players People from La Mesa, California Toronto Blue Jays players Richmond Braves players Seattle Mariners coaches St. Lucie Mets players Syracuse SkyChiefs players Toronto Blue Jays coaches American expatriate baseball players in Australia Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks players