Connor Phillips and Will Benson have a good chance to make a bigger impact in 2026

GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Last August, Will Benson and Connor Phillips were both called up from Triple-A. While they didn’t have huge roles at first, they each went on to be clutch down the stretch and delivered for the Reds in big moments while the team chased a playoff berth.

What they’ve shown puts them in a solid position from a roster perspective as spring training gets underway.

When Terry Francona was asked about Phillips, he said that the situation this spring was a lot like rookie Sal Stewart, who hasn’t been guaranteed anything but likely will be the Reds’ starting first baseman.

“You don’t give guys jobs,” Francona said. “But we certainly hope, because what he did really made our bullpen different. He was a big part of that. He’s resilient as hell. He has velocity. He has a breaking ball. And there are things he’s working on.”

Francona said that Phillips can be better as whole with his time to the plate, controlling the running game and with his situational awareness. But on the whole, Phillips is a 24-year-old rookie who has one of the best arms on the entire team and was as impressive as any Reds reliever last September.

“What Connor Phillips did for us down the stretch last year was incredible,” closer Emilio Pagán said. “You could argue we don’t make the playoffs without him down the stretch. He were running on fumes a bit (in the bullpen). I’m excited to see what he has done this offseason. He’s a super talented arm.”

Phillips might have been the best personal story on the 2025 Reds.

The story starts on Sept. 30, 2023. In Game 161, the night that the Reds got eliminated, Phillips started against the Cardinals, threw 12 straight balls and got pulled from the game. Phillips opened the 2024 season in Triple-A. He posted an 8.35 ERA, and he couldn’t throw strikes. It was so bad that at one point, the Reds moved him from Triple-A to the team’s spring training facility for a break and a chance to reset.

Then in spring training of 2025, after dealing with some “thoracic outlet syndrome stuff” — that’s known as a very scary injury — Phillips opened the year on the IL. He needed multiple shots in his neck and in his pec to loosen that area of muscles and tendons. There were times where he couldn’t feel his arm or his hand because of the injury.

He returned from the IL in May, and at that point he became a full-time reliever for the first time. Four months later, he was an essential part of the Reds’ bullpen.

That experience gives him momentum entering 2026.

“Last year gave me a ton of confidence,” Phillips said. “That last month stretch where I was really able to put some things together and pitch in high leverage spots, that sets me up to have a strong start here.”

The Reds return their seventh, eighth and ninth inning guys from the 2025 team in Graham Ashcraft, Tony Santillan and Emilio Pagán. The front office also prioritized building a much stronger middle relief core and added reliable veterans in Pierce Johnson, Caleb Ferguson and Brock Burke.

Even with those guys in the bullpen, a lot of the upside of that unit comes from dynamic young guys like Phillips, Zach Maxwell and Luis Mey.

Last year, Phillips pitched in five games in the seventh inning or later when the score was tied or the Reds had a one-run lead. He showed that he has the stuff to get great hitters out in those moments.

Last September, Phillips posted a 1.35 ERA with a .049 batting average against and 19 strikeouts in September — tied for fourth-most in the league among relievers. Technically, he’s competing for a spot this spring.

“A lot of it is on me to go out and show that I’m still that same guy that was pitching in September,” Phillips said. “If I go out this spring and fill up the zone, I’ll be alright.”

Last fall, until the final week of the season, the Reds typically were careful about how they used Phillips. He didn’t throw a ton of back-to-backs and got space between his outings, but then the Reds really let him loose in the final week of the season as he pitched five times in seven days (including the playoffs).

A big part of the next step for Phillips, who still hasn’t even been a reliever for a full year, the grind of making 60-to-70 appearances. Phillips says that he’s capable of pitching a ton.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if I go four days in a row quite a bit this year,” Phillips said. “I’m 24 right now. I’m going to use that to my advantage.

If he carries what he did last September over a full season, that’s one of the better young relievers in the game. Look around baseball, and you’ll see a lot of young relievers who rise very quickly and all of a sudden end up as regular high-leverage relievers.

“I’d love to repeat (what I did last September),” Phillips said. “That takes a lot of pressure and innings off of some of the guys that might need a couple more days (off) and are our high-leverage guys. If I can take a day from one of our eighth or ninth inning guys, obviously I’ll go do that. My end goal is to be an eight-nine guy. Right now, I want to pitch for those guys.”

Will Benson

When Benson sat down for his one-on-one meeting with Francona at the start of spring training, Francona told him, “This will be a more fun meeting than it was last year.”

At this point last year, Benson was coming off of a very poor 2024 season where he hit .187 and posted a -1.4 WAR. As a result, last spring, it didn’t even feel like he was really in the mix for a spot on the Opening Day roster. He ended up behind Blake Dunn, Jacob Hurtubise, Tyler Callihan, Rece Hinds and others on the depth chart.

Benson ran with the opportunities that he received last season. There weren’t a ton as he spent half of the year in Triple-A, but he made an impact and showed that he was getting better. In September, Benson ended up being a key piece and delivered several clutch swings while posting a .881 OPS.

That should carry over into a role on the team in 2026.

“I’ve never not been impressed with Will’s outlook,” Francona said. “There were some tough send downs and tough conversations (last year). He can be streaky. When he’s streaking good, we definitely want to use it.”

Benson could benefit from the Reds trading Gavin Lux. In 2025, Lux was mostly a DH and a left fielder and made 440 plate appearances vs. RHP.

“It doesn’t take Lux’s (role completely), but it’s the left-handed hitter that plays more against righties,” Francona said. “The thing we think can help is he plays all three outfield positions.”

Benson is a solid defender and a useful platoon piece. He had solid stats vs. RHP last season, but the numbers showed that he was one of the unluckiest hitters in the game. He led the Reds and ranked 74th in all of MLB (among batters with 100+ plate appearances) in a very popular metric called xWOBA, which “measures how consistently hard hitters hit the ball.”

His .708 OPS vs. RHP doesn’t pop, but there were so many moments where a screaming line drive got caught. In 2025, Benson hit 13 line drives (95+ mph) that would have qualified as homers in GABP that were either robbed or caught at the warning track and ended up being outs.

So when he reflected on his 2025 season, Benson gave him more credit than the numbers (.708 OPS) showed.

At the end of the day, Benson said that this game is the simplest terms is swinging at good pitches and hitting the ball hard in play. The metrics showed that Benson did that well last season.

“It was such a blessing because through it all I was able to maintain a level head,” Benson said. “I kept my mind rooted in the process. I learned from what actually allowed me to be in the position to be a such an unlucky person. That meant a lot of what I was doing aligned with consistency and going about things the right way. The ball didn’t go in my favor. But the execution was elite.”

On days where Spencer Steer, TJ Friedl and Noelvi Marte make up the starting outfield, Benson profiles as an impact bench bat and potential defensive replacement in the corners. Injuries always happen, and Benson should make plenty of starts in 2026.

When asked what Francona’s message was to him, Benson said, “Just go out there and play. You’re going to play left, right, center. Go out there and show up. I want to be consistent and head into the season with a clear identity. Implement my work into actual game action.”