PHOENIX -- Tony Phillips, an infielder and outfielder who made the final defensive play in the Oakland Athletics' sweep of the San Francisco Giants during the earthquake-interrupted 1989 World Series, has died. He was 56.
The A's didn't provide a cause of death Friday in announcing Phillips' passing, which the club said occurred Wednesday in Arizona and was unexpected.
Former teammate Dave Stewart, however, told the San Francisco Chronicle that Phillips had died from an apparent heart attack.
"T.P. was like my little brother," Stewart told the Chronicle.
"The Oakland A's lost another member of our family this week with the unexpected passing of Tony Phillips," A's president Michael Crowley said in a statement.