2 Reds players who are startlingly ineligible for the playoff roster and 1 player who is uniquely eligible

Connor Phillips is startlingly ineligible to be part of the Reds playoff roster.

For the same reasons (and then some) that Carson Spiers is ineligble to be part of the Cincinnati Reds playoff roster, Connor Phillips will have to sit this one out as well. While there is a chance that the Reds top prospect could be added to the 40-man roster in the coming days, it'll be much too late.

Just like Spiers, Phillips was added as a substitute player when a bevy of Reds pitchers landed on the COVID-19-related injured list. Phillips was a non-roster invitee to spring training, and spent the entire 2023 season in the minors until he joined the active roster in early-September.

Phillips first major league start came against his old club. The Seattle Mariners originally drafted Phillips, but the right-hander was part the trade that sent Eugenio Suarez and Jesse Winker to SeaTown prior to the 2022 season.

The Reds may yet add Phillips to the 40-man roster before the end of the 2023 season. With pitchers like Brandon Williamson and Andrew Abbott possibly approaching innings-limits, David Bell may need a spot-starter at some point over the final two weeks of the season.

If not, Connor Phillips will definitely be added to the Cincinnati Reds 40-man roster this offseason in order to protect the 22-year-old from the Rule 5 Draft. There are a lot of fans and pundits who believe that Phillips could be part of the Reds starting rotation on Opening Day next season.