Q&A with new COO Chris Phillips

The following is a transcription of a Q&A with the Aces new chief operating officer Chris Phillips, conducted by Aces communications manager Kevin Bass.

KB: First off, can you introduce yourself? Give us your name where you're from and what brought you here?

CP: My name is Chris Phillips. I'm the new chief operating officer for the Reno Aces. This will be my 21st year in minor league baseball, most recently coming from Colorado Springs running the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox and Single-A Rocky Mountain Vibes team.

KB: So what got you into baseball? Were you a player, or just a fan growing up? Let's just talk about talking about your origins in baseball.

CP: Originally grew up on the east coast, in New Jersey. My father was super influential in getting me involved in the game. Played little league, obviously all growing up, play through high school, had the kind of notoriety of having Tommy John as my little league coach after he had just retired from the Yankees. We lived in Cresskill, kind of a quiet suburb town in New Jersey, and his son, Tommy Jr. and I were the same age and wound up on the same little league team and got the opportunity to learn from one of the greats.

KB: What was he like as a coach?

CP: He’s great. I mean, we still keep in touch. He's been my hot stove keynote speaker a number of times for a number of different teams. I think he's got 298 wins over the course of his career, but couldn't be a nicer guy.

KB: Did you realize when you were when you were playing for him..

CP: I had no idea. My dad, you know, and all the other little league fathers were over the moon about having a guy of that caliber, helping to coach the Little League team. But you know, I don't think at that point, we realized the significance of it.

KB: That's awesome. So, shifting gears a little bit, what about Reno and the Aces was appealing and what brought you out here?

CP: You know, again, I’ve had a long career in Minor League Baseball was in the Pacific Coast League for 10 years with the Sky Sox, and got to know the league really well. Obviously, things have changed a little bit, but I got to know a lot of the personnel around the league, including Eric and some of the leadership here, and always had a great amount of respect for the organization. I had come out to Reno only once in 2013 when the Aces hosted the PCL All Star game. And I remember being on an excursion with all the executives out to Tahoe, and an amazing time and didn't really get to experience much of the city on that trip. But after reconnecting with Eric and seeing this opportunity out here, and then coming out for more of a formal visit as part of the interview process, and really getting to get a feel for the city and some of the different neighborhoods. And just the amount of growth that seems to be happening here was really exciting, and intriguing. And as we continue to invest into the ballpark and invest in the real estate around the area, I think there's a ton of upside and opportunity to really take this to the next level.

KB: So what have been some of your first impressions and first takeaways from living out here in Northern Nevada?

CP: It's great. I mean, it's very similar to Colorado Springs, you know, it's a similar sized city, same kind of high desert climate, weather, you know, sunshine all the time, obviously, you have Tahoe here, which is incredible. And that was kind of the deal sealer after coming out for the interview process. But staff has been amazing to work with and really get to know and get a feel for who our partners are, and what some of the history behind the team is. And it's been exciting. Everyone's been very welcoming, and just ready to get the season rolling. I think we're at 82 days from opening day right now. Well, hopefully a return to a bit of normalcy. You know, I think everybody was excited to get back to baseball and 2021 although there were still some challenges and differences as the season was starting and being at limited capacities. And, you know, I think as we're planning for a new year, I just had a call with the D-backs, they're a great partner affiliate for us to be able to work with. Coming into this and an organization that's already very well run and very well respected. And just seeing opportunities to kind of take things to that next level and really grow the fan experience side of the games, making sure that people are coming in here and walking away with real memories that they can take home with their families, and just elevating that for everybody is something that I'm really focused on.