South Jersey’s Tyler Phillips had quite a day in his first start, a win for the Phillies against the A’s

A few hours before Saturday’s game, right-handed pitcher Michael Mercado walked up to Tyler Phillips in the clubhouse. He gave him a pat on the chest. Mercado spent most of this season with Phillips in triple A, and saw, first-hand, how intense Phillips gets before his starts. He wanted to lighten the mood.

“He kind of channels a little bit of a … different personality,” Mercado said. “It works for him.”

Phillips calls it his alter ego. When he walks onto the mound, the righty goes into “kill mode.” He hates every hitter he faces. He wants them to smell blood in the water. He wants them to fear him.

That attitude came through loud and clear in the Phillies’ 11-5 win over the A’s on Saturday afternoon. Phillips’ jaw was clenched. He mouthed some choice words to himself before inducing a lineout to J.J. Bleday in the first inning. He mouthed a different set of choice words as he walked off the mound in the second, third, fourth, and fifth.

“When I’m out there, I don’t even know what I’m saying,” Phillips said. “It’s just the most belligerent stuff you could think of. Just talking the hitter down. There’s a lot of language involved. It keeps me in that attack mode, step on their throat, you know? They don’t feel bad for me if stuff isn’t going well. So, I’ve got to go out there and not feel bad for them.

“They’re very like — incoherent thoughts. Mother [expletive] [expletive]. You’re done you mother [expletive]. If I’m walking off the mound after a big strikeout I’m like, you [expletive] [expletive]. I don’t know. My mom has been telling me I need to cool it with that. I’m like, ‘Mom, that’s just the mindset I go into.’

“My aunt was here tonight, and she would text my mom, and she’s like, ‘He’s got to cover his mouth.’ It’s just too much work. I don’t care. I want guys to know that I’m out there trying to compete my [expeltive] off.”

It was the perfect energy to bring to the biggest game of Phillips’ young career. Entering Saturday, he’d pitched only four big league innings, all in relief. Now, he was on the mound, making his first big league start for the team he grew up rooting for. Phillips was raised in Lumberton, N.J., and went to Bishop Eustace Prep. He spent much of his childhood at the Vet and Citizens Bank Park and had plenty of family and friends in attendance on Saturday.

Pitching at home can bring a degree of pressure, especially for a rookie, but the righty seemed unfazed. Whenever he struggled, he bounced right back. Phillips allowed a one-out RBI double to Seth Brown in the second and retired his next two batters on a lineout and a strikeout.

When he walked back to the dugout, Edmundo Sosa and Wes Wilson caught a glimpse of his self-talk.

“I like his mentality,” Sosa said.

Wilson agreed.

“It kind of fired me up,” he said.

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Phillips allowed a two-out solo home run to Zack Gelof in the third but struck out Bleday to end the inning. He allowed a leadoff single in the fourth and induced a double play and a strikeout to stop the bleeding. The rookie pitched into the seventh, departing with one on and no outs.

When he walked off the mound, he received a standing ovation.

“I know what a standing O means in Philly and I wasn’t expecting that for myself,” Phillips said. “I threw the ball well. Result wise, it wasn’t perfect, [or] how I wanted it to be. But to have that many people stand behind me, it means something. I was choked up real bad.”

He allowed four earned runs on six hits with no walks, five strikeouts, and two home runs in six innings.

It was a strong debut in a high-pressure situation, and the Phillies gave him enough run support to pull out a win. They had only nine hits, but four were home runs. Nick Castellanos hit a two-run shot in the second, Johan Rojas a solo home run in the fourth — which, at 102 mph, was his hardest hit of the season — and Trea Turner hit a two-run home run a few at-bats later.

Bryce Harper piled on with a solo shot to left field in the bottom of the seventh and a two-run double in the eighth. Castellanos hit a two-run double shortly after Harper, to give the Phillies an 11-4 lead.

The bullpen had a shaky afternoon. Orion Kerkering entered in the seventh with one on and no outs. He allowed a foul ball to Brown that almost went out, en route to a strikeout. Back-to-back singles drove home the baserunner he’d inherited.

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Kerkering struck out Max Schuemann and Gregory Soto struck out Miguel Andujar to end the inning. Jeff Hoffman entered in the eighth, and quickly got to two outs, but threw a wild pitch that allowed Brent Rooker to advance to first base. He walked Shea Langeliers to put runners on first and second but struck out Brown to avoid further damage.

José Alvarado pitched the ninth. He induced a groundout, allowed a single to Brett Harris, induced a flyout, and then allowed an RBI double to Andujar. He walked Gelof to put runners on first and second with two outs, and walked Bleday to load the bases. He struck out Rooker to end the game.

Phillips sat in the dugout through it all. After Alvarado’s strikeout, he climbed over the railing, and stood at the top of the line to greet his teammates as they jogged off the field. Next week, he’ll go to the Jersey Shore with his family, as any 26-year-old from south Jersey would do.

But this time, Phillips will make that trip as a Phillies starter, with a major league win under his belt. According to manager Rob Thomson, there will be more starts to come.

“I was telling the guys earlier...there’s a little kid inside of me,” Phillips said. “He’s screaming, he’s punching the air. He’s like, ‘Man, we’re here. We’re a Phillie.’ It’s the best thing ever.”