Red Sox select Marcus Phillips with 33rd overall pick

With the 33rd overall pick in the 2025 MLB First-Year Player Draft, the Red Sox selected Marcus Phillips, a right-handed pitcher out of the University of Tennessee. The pick, in Competitive Balance Round A, was acquired from Milwaukee along with Yophery Rodriguez and John Holobetz in exchange for Quinn Priester. Phillips is the 67th-ranked draft prospect by Baseball America and 61st by MLB Pipeline. Eric Longenhagen of Fangraphs had the highest ranking on Phillips, ranking him at 13. 

The best pitch in his arsenal is a fastball that sits at 96-98 mph and touches 100. He struck out 98 in 83 innings this year for the Volunteers in his first year as a starter. He pitched out of the bullpen as a sophomore and struck out 22 over 20 innings with an ERA of 4.95. He attended Iowa Western Community College as a freshman, where he was a two-way player but pitched sparingly due to injuries and an inconsistent ability to throw strikes. Injuries were also an issue for him in his senior year of high school in South Dakota, which led him to the JuCo route. 

Phillips put himself on the national radar coming out of the bullpen in his sophomore season on a Tennessee team that won the College World Series. He recorded three saves, including one against Vanderbilt that advanced Tennessee to the SEC Championship game. The 6-foot-4, 246-pounder manned the number two spot in the rotation this year behind 5th-overall pick Liam Doyle.  The soon-to-be 21-year-old picked up a win in the Knoxville Regional over Cincinnati, but did take the loss in the Fayetteville Super Regional, where Tennessee ultimately fell to Arkansas. He ranked second on the team in ERA, WHIP, and innings pitched.

Phillips has several traits similar to other players the Red Sox have drafted recently, including good size and elite extension. He also has a slider with a high spin rate and adds an occasional changeup. A somewhat violent arm action and past injuries give Phillips a higher risk profile, but as Payton Tolle has shown this year, having elite fastball velocity with elite extension gives you a good chance any time you step on the mound. 

The slot value for this selection is $2,898,300.

Photo Credit: Marcus Phillips by utsports.com.

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