Tampa Bay Rays: Brett Phillips sends classy message after DFA

Every year around the MLB trade deadline, we are reminded that baseball is indeed a business. Trades often break up clubhouses (see the Baltimore Orioles with Trey Mancini) and separate players who were fan favorites from their original teams.

When the Tampa Bay Rays announced on Monday afternoon that they were designating popular outfielder Brett Phillips for assignment, the move may have made sense from a business standpoint (Phillips was slashing .147/.225/.250 this season for the Rays in 208 plate appearances over 75 games) but certainly the fun quotient on the Rays has gone down considerably.

While the move may have sent Phillips away from the Rays, the native of Seminole, Fla., located less than 14 miles from Tropicana Field, posted a heartfelt message on social media about his time with his hometown team.

Check out the emotional message from Brett Phillips after being designated for assignment by the Tampa Bay Rays

The video below was posted to Twitter by Phillips after the news of his status with the team was made official.

Phillips ending his video by saying, “Never forget, baseball is fun, baby” sums up how Phillips has approached his time in the field, at the plate, and even on the mound. From his unique warmup before entering the game as a position player pitching to a moment when he met an 8-year-old girl batting cancer and hit a home run while she was telling the television announcers how Phillips was her favorite player, Phillips has had some memorable moments with the Rays.

It’s likely that Phillips will land with another team in the not-too-distant future, as his personality and potential on the field will be hard for another team to pass up. And don’t forget that Phillips went 3-for-7 in the Rays’ World Series run of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, meaning he has some postseason potential as well.

Brett Phillips encouraging Tampa Bay Rays fans to continue to support the team (even after it designated him for assignment) as it makes another run at a postseason berth this season shows that baseball certainly is a business, but can still have some positives to it as well.