Philadelphia Phillies' rookie starting pitcher Andrew Painter gave it everything he had in Sunday's series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He didn't start the game as expected, but came on in relief and threw five innings of one-run baseball. Despite the nice bounce-back from a concerning injury, the Phillies still dropped the final game of the series, leaving Painter adrift after pushing through a touch situation.
Shortly before first pitch, Painter was scratched from his start due to a migraine, something that he has experienced in the past and suffered from again Sunday morning. Painter still managed to fight through and come out for the third inning and proceed to still throw five innings out of the bullpen to save the Phillies from burning through the rest of the pen.
Phillies' Andrew Painter deserved a better outcome for playing through a migraine
Painter finally took his place on the mound in the third inning and threw five innings while allowing three hits, one walk, and just one run. He also struck out seven batters, backed by a 36 percent whiff rate on 39 swings, per Statcast. Painter effectively silenced the Diamondbacks, but then handed the ball over to the bullpen, who immediately gave up two runs, erasing Painter's notable effort on the mound and sealing a tough 4-3 loss.
The loss was bad enough, but it left Phillies fans that much more disappointed after finding out what Painter had to do just to get himself ready ahead of Sunday's game.
Andrew Painter said he has a history of migraines, but had never missed a start because of one. Said he was sick all morning, but with medicine, started feeling a little better 15 minutes before the game and felt 100% by the third.
— Charlotte Varnes (@charlottevarnes) April 12, 2026
Painter has been solid in his three games this year. Including Sunday's heroics, Painter sports a 1-0 record, with a 3.77 ERA. He also has 16 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings pitched. He's only allowed one run in two of his outings, with his start in San Francisco being the outlier with the four runs allowed.
The Phillies came into 2026 not knowing what version of Painter they would get. He had a bumpy recovery from Tommy John surgery in Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2025, but has looked the part as a top pitching prospect in MLB in 2026. The Phillies are lucky to have Painter in the fold for the future of the franchise, and Sunday proved he's willing to do what it takes to put the Phillies in the best spot possible to succeed. Unfortunately, once he relinquished control, his teammates let him down.