Connor Phillips
#34 RP · Reds
Height
6'2"
Weight
209 lbs
Age
25
College
N/A
Draft
2020, Rd 1, #64
Experience
2 yrs
Bats/Throws
R/R
B+
D
N/A
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The Verdict on Connor, in One Read
On the field, Connor Phillips grades out as a strong RP for Reds (B+ Performance). That places him 120th of 389 graded relief pitchers. The public read is negative (D Sentiment), drawn from current news and social signal rather than the box score.
Career StatsB+
| Year | Team | GP | ERA | W-L | K | WHIP | IP | SV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career |  | 50 | 4.852535 | 7-1 | 85 | 1.3824885 | 0.0 | 1 |
| 2026 | | 25 | 5.53 | 1-0 | 28 | 1.77 | 27.2 | 1 |
| 2025 |
Current Contract
Length
1 year
AAV
$780K/yr
Performance Analysis
B+
FCA+
Connor Phillips earns a solid B+ performance grade as a reliever, reflecting above-average production from a second-year pitcher still finding his footing in Cincinnati's bullpen. The 24-year-old right-hander represents an intriguing developmental piece for the Reds, with his 2020 first-round pedigree (64th overall) suggesting the raw talent that made him an attractive draft selection. However, Phillips' trajectory remains clouded by significant durability concerns following major surgery, creating a disconnect between his on-field performance and the skeptical sentiment surrounding his long-term reliability. His recent improvements have generated cautious optimism among analysts, but the inconsistency that has defined his early career keeps evaluators from fully embracing him as a dependable bullpen asset. The media frames this as a make-or-break season for Phillips, treating him as exactly what Cincinnati hoped to uncover — a low-cost reclamation project with legitimate upside that requires sustained health to transform from lottery ticket into trusted reliever. While his performance grade suggests he's delivering when healthy, the underlying narrative remains focused on whether he can string together a full season of availability rather than just quality outings.
Fan & Media Sentiment
D
Negative
NegativeNeutralPositive
The public perception surrounding Connor Phillips sits in deeply uncertain territory right now, and the current sentiment grade reflects exactly that — a narrative dominated by medical caution rather than confidence. Phillips is returning from major surgery, and while the organization and beat writers have expressed cautious optimism, the overriding tone is one of hopeful uncertainty rather than genuine belief, with the consensus framing him as a high-risk, high-reward arm whose reliability remains a legitimate open question. That tension becomes especially stark when you consider his on-field performance grade, which rates as a genuine B+ — meaning the talent and execution, when he has been available, suggest an above-average reliever who can get outs at the MLB level, making the health concerns the only real ceiling on his upside. His first MLB save generated a burst of positive headlines and offered the kind of tangible proof-of-concept moment that should build confidence, but it landed in a news cycle too preoccupied with surgical recovery timelines to fully celebrate it. The Reds' recent roster activity — cycling through multiple pitching transactions including additions of Chase Petty, Nick Lodolo, Caleb Ferguson, and Brandon Williamson — signals a front office actively managing bullpen depth, which adds a layer of organizational hedging around Phillips specifically and makes it harder for any single arm to own a defined role in the public narrative. Sitting at 20-16 and holding the sixth seed in the National League Central, Cincinnati still has meaningful stakes in this regular season, and a healthy Phillips could be a genuine factor, but that qualifier is doing enormous work. The bottom line is this: the sentiment is cooling because the surgery narrative is louder than the save, and until Phillips builds a sustained run of availability, the perception gap between his talent ceiling and his current public standing is likely to persist.
How Connor Compares at the Position
Connor Phillips ranks 120th of 389 graded relief pitchers by performance. That slots Connor between Hunter Stratton (B+) just ahead and IAN Hamilton (B+) just behind.
Graded higher
Hunter StrattonBravesB+Matt FestaGuardiansB+Jacob WebbCubsB+Connor PhillipsB+
Graded lower
IAN HamiltonBravesNews & Buzz
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About this player
Connor Phillips is a player in his 2nd MLB season listed at RP for the Reds. FanVerdicts covers every MLB player, team, GM, and transaction — and puts your verdict on all of it. Sign in to cast your Fan Verdict on Connor Phillips, see where the crowd lands, and argue the call. FanVerdicts also brings its own read — performance, sentiment, and Contract Value Index — as one honest input alongside the crowd's. Where FanVerdicts has weighed in so far: Performance B+, Sentiment D.
The crowd's Fan Verdict moves in real time as fans vote on this profile. FanVerdicts' own read updates as new data lands — performance recalculates when MLB game stats post, sentiment shifts with media coverage and fan discussion, and the Contract Value Index recomputes when contract terms change. Contract details below show the structure (years, total value, average annual value, guarantees) behind the Contract Value Index read.
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