CINCINNATI — The Reds signed Brandon Phillips to a ceremonial one-day contract Saturday to verify the four-time Gold Glove Award winner would retire with the staff.
“It was once a dream come true,” Phillips stated. “For me to formally retire, this was once the one position I sought after to do it. For this to actually occur, that is the place I sought after to be. That is my house.”
Phillips, 44, who additionally was once inducted into the Reds Corridor of Reputation on Saturday, spent 11 seasons in Cincinnati, the place he earned 3 Nationwide League All-Megastar picks and a Silver Slugger Award whilst successful two NL Central Department titles and making 3 playoff appearances.
“He introduced a mode and character that Reds enthusiasts completely beloved,” Reds CEO Phil Castellini stated. “He was once a cornerstone of our membership and some of the dynamic gamers within the sport. The relationship he constructed with this town was once actual, and retiring him as a Purple is our likelihood to honor that unforgettable courting.”
Phillips, identified for his a lot of highlight-reel performs at 2nd, signed the contract throughout a public tournament at Nice American Ball Park previous to the Reds webhosting the Detroit Tigers.
He performed 17 seasons for the Cleveland Guardians, Reds, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels and the 2018 Global Sequence-winning Boston Purple Sox. After 4 subpar years in Cleveland, Phillips was once traded to the Reds on April 7, 2006, in change for a participant to be named: right-hander Jeff Stevens.
“They gave me the chance to actually be myself,” Phillips stated of the Reds. “That is all I actually had to know as a tender participant. When a company actually believes in you as a participant … it felt excellent.”
Additionally inducted into the Reds Corridor of Reputation this weekend had been pitcher Aaron Harang, outfielder Reggie Sanders and supervisor Lou Piniella, who led Cincinnati to the 1990 Global Sequence championship.