At 56, former Tigers 2B Tony Phillips to play again

PITTSBURG, Calif. – Former Detroit Tigers second baseman Tony Phillips is heading back to professional baseball.

Phillips, 56, has signed a contract to play for the independent Pittsburg Diamonds, the club announced over the weekend. In joining the team, Phillips hopes to use the Diamonds gig as a steppingstone to signing a deal with a team in the Dominican Republic, he said, so he can win a bet he made while coaching about four years ago.

“This kid was busting my chops and said, ‘I guarantee you can’t play in the Dominican Republic.’ So I took on that challenge and I haven’t stopped yet,” Phillips said. “I couldn’t have had this opportunity if I had been sitting on my (expletive) these 4 to 5 years.”

Now living in Arizona, Phillips played briefly for the independent Yuma Scorpions in 2011, but his season was marred by injuries, so questions remain about whether his body will hold up against the demand of playing six days a week. Diamonds manager Aaron Miles said he expects Phillips to be in good shape and show signs of his younger self. But he implied that Phillips won’t play every day.

“I think it’s going to be absolutely wonderful for every one of our players to be able to pick his mind,” Miles said. “As far as him and his ability to play every day at this level at this age, that remains to be seen.”

To his credit, Phillips invited fans to come out and judge his performance for themselves, and to give him feedback. He pledged to stay the whole month, “unless I’m horse (expletive),” and brushed off questions about whether he’s up for the challenge of returning to professional ball.

“Am I gonna play? Hell yeah, I ain’t comin’ down there for vacation, you stupid,” Phillips said. “I could stay here and sit on my (expletive) if that’s what I wanted to do. I’m coming out there to play.”

In his heyday, Phillips was considered one of the most valuable infielders in the majors. Over an 18-year career, he racked up more than 2,000 hits and had a combined total of more than 7,000 fielding putouts and assists.

Note: In other Tigers alumni news, former outfielder Chad Curtis plans to represent himself in a civil lawsuit in federal court via a video link from prison. Curtis is in prison for sexual misconduct with teenage girls at Lakewood High School in western Michigan. The Grand Rapids Press reports an order filed in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids says Curtis will participate in the Aug. 31 hearing by videoconference unless the issues are resolved earlier.

Curtis wants to personally depose the four plaintiffs, but their lawyers say that’s not appropriate. The judge also will consider other issues in the case.