Super-utility player Tony Phillips, a member of the A’s 1989 title team, died of an apparent heart attack on Wednesday in Scottsdale, Ariz., at the age of 56.

“T.P. was like my little brother,” said former teammate Dave Stewart, who heard the news from A’s Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson on Friday morning. “We gravitated toward each other and found a lifelong friendship.”

Phillips, who threw out Brett Butler at first base for the final out of that 1989 World Series between the A’s and Giants and also homered in Game 3, had been living in Scottsdale, Ariz.

“I’ll never forget Tony because he threw me the ball for that last out, we always had a connection,” A’s Hall of Fame closer Dennis Eckersley said.

“Tony will forever be remembered by the fans because he made that last out, and it was a tough groundball he made a great play on,” said former A’s manager Tony La Russa, who is now Arizona’s chief baseball officer. “He had so much energy, he was so feisty, full of piss and vinegar - nothing fazed him. And you could play him anywhere.

“He was still in great shape, he was down here at our camp three or four days a week. I’m just in shock.”

Former A’s slugger Jose Canseco said he played golf with Phillips in Las Vegas last week and Phillips was in terrific shape. “He kicked my ass,” Canseco said. “He was healthy as a horse, hitting it a mile. He had a real good attitude, he was real happy. I can’t believe this, he was only 56, and he seemed like teenager.”

Phillips was still involved in baseball, coaching and talking to student as well as making numerous appearances at the Coliseum for reunions and charity events.

The A’s 1989 championship club has lost three members in the past two years: pitcher Bob Welch, outfielder Dave Henderson and Phillips.

“It’s unbelievable, Rickey and I were just talking about it, first Welchy, then Hendu and now T.P.,” Stewart said. “It’s crazy.”

“Oh my gosh, it’s not just the talent, but the personalities,” La Russa said. “These guys were beloved, Bobby and Hendu and Tony. They were right in the middle of all the fun we had.

“Everyone loved Tony. They’d always try to get him upset, make him mad, and then he’d say, ‘I’ll show you!’ ”

A chatterbox with a delightful cackle of a laugh, Phillips always was one of the most popular members of every team he played for.

“You always knew when he was in the house. He was just a little sparkplug, fiery,” Stewart said. “Just a good, good friend.”

“The time I spent with him was always a blast,” said Hall of Fame slugger Frank Thomas, who played with Phillips in Chicago and remained close to him. “He was the man - and he loved the game, he had that passion.”

Phillips spent his first eight years in the big leagues with Oakland and spent his final season with the A’s, in 1999; a broken leg, incurred while sliding into second base, ended his career at the age of 40. The 10th overall pick in the 1978 draft, by the Expos, Phillips finished his 18-year career, which included stints with the Tigers, White Sox, Angels, Blue Jays and Mets, with 2,023 hits and 1,300 runs. He twice led the league in walks, and he played every position except catcher and pitcher.

“He was a manager’s dream,” Eckersley said.

Phillips played for independent league Yuma in 2011-12 and last year, at the age of 56, he played in a handful of games for the independent-league Pittsburg Diamonds. A hothead on the field, Phillips was in numerous brawls and even had a dustup with former Dodgers outfielder Mike Marshall while playing for Yuma just four years ago. In 1996, in Milwaukee, Phillips allegedly punched a fan in the stands in the face after enduring what teammates described as racial slurs from the fan; Phillips and the fan were charged with disorderly conduct and ordered to pay fines.

“He was a little red-ass, loud, major high-energy, perfect for that team,” Eckersley said. “He could drive you nuts, but he was funny as hell. One of a kind.”

“You could hear him coming two miles away,” Thomas said. “And he wouldn’t let you slide - he was tough. He came to play every day and he expected you to, too. He was really one of the best, and no B.S. He’d call a squirrel and squirrel and a mouse a mouse.”

Phillips was one of the few late-80s A’s to remain close to Canseco and he helped convince Canseco to attend an 1989 reunion at the Coliseum in 2014.

“Tony had a unique personality,” Canseco said. “If you understood him, you got along with him.”

Tributes to Phillips rolled in all day Friday. Mets general manager Sandy Alderson, who was Oakland’s GM in 1989, said via text, "The passing of Tony Phillips is another all-too-soon loss from the 1989 A's World Series champions. Over nine years, Tony helped propel the A's to their late 1980s success. He was a tough, highly competitive player with an emotional, infectious personality to match. T.P. will be greatly missed by those who knew him."

Art Howe said that Phillips was a real key for a better-than-expected 1999 A’s team, which wound up contending longer than any anticipated. “When we started to put some wins together, T.P. was in the middle of everything we had going,” Howe said. “It was a privilege to manage him, he was just a joy to be around and a great role model for our younger players. He couldn’t wait to get to the ballpark. I can’t ever remember seeing him without a smile on his face ... and that laugh was infectious.”

Drug and legal problems nearly ended Phillips’ career in 1997; Anaheim’s leadoff hitter and sparkplug, Phillips was arrested for cocaine possession, entered a guilty plea and went into drug counseling; in his absence, the Angels fell out of the pennant race, and Phillips’ arrest often is considered the turning point of the team’s fortunes that season.

Phillips’ brother, Craig, said that services have not yet been scheduled but likely will be held in Phillips’ hometown of Roswell, Ga.

Susan Slusser is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: sslusser@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @susanslusser