The Philadelphia Phillies need Andrew Painter to pan out. The club that has only three good pitchers in a five-man starting rotation will have to rely on youngsters like Painter to fill that gap, or use him and others like him to trade for reinforcements. The one thing they can’t afford to have happen is for Painter to never live up to the potential he showed as a top prospect.
The Phillies mercifully pulled the plug on the Andrew Painter experience two weeks ago after the 23-year-old posted a horrifying 7.06 ERA over his first 14 big league games. The main issue for the Floridian hurler was simply allowing too many baserunners, as he was knocked around for 84 hits and 24 walks over just 65 innings pitched. The right-hander’s lack of command and feel for his six-pitch mix allowed opposing batters to tee off on him routinely.
That seems to be the major emphasis the Phillies are placing on his time in Triple-A, as they gave him almost two full weeks off before having him take the mound once again. The initial results were decent, as Painter needed 80 pitches to get through four innings, allowing one earned run on two hits and three walks, while punching out four batters.
It’s encouraging to see him not get banged around, but the worries about control still remain as he needed so many pitches over so few innings.
The fastball command for Andrew Painter was there today. Had trouble locating the other pitches.
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrPHL) June 28, 2026
4 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 4 K, 3 BB
80 pitches, 44 strikes.
Still lots of work to do. Fastball looked to have more movement.#Phillies
Painter is likely going to remain in Lehigh Valley for the foreseeable future, as the worst thing that the Phillies could do is rush him back up just to act as a piñata again. Rebuilding the young man’s confidence is just as important as jumpstarting his mechanics.
That confidence piece may be the key to unlocking the riddle of Andrew Painter, as it’s been a few years since he looked like the future ace he was billed as. The 2021 first-round pick tore through the minors in his first two years with the organization, reaching Double-A at just 19 years old and working to a sub-3.00 ERA there.
The Phillies expected Painter to make an impact on the major league club as soon as 2023, his age-20 season, but Tommy John surgery scuttled all of 2023 and 2024, and he struggled to find his footing in his return to action in 2025. In 22 Triple-A starts, Painter limped to a 5.40 ERA and took himself out of the running for a big league call-up despite sky-high expectations.
Phillies' Andrew Painter has been through a lot, and it shows
Just to recap, since 2023 Andrew Painter has been through a major injury to his throwing arm, two full seasons on the shelf, a dismal return to minor league action, and then a brutal start to his big league career. Even the most mature 23-year-old would be feeling pretty down on himself in those circumstances.
Unfortunately for the Phillies, there’s no guarantee that Painter can get back on track. He may go down as yet another supremely talented high schooler who had his career derailed by injuries. However, he’s still younger than both Chase Utley and Ryan Howard were when they made their major league debuts, and look how they turned out. Both Andrew Painter and the Phillies have plenty of time to work out the kinks, and a slow-and-steady approach to a minor league reset is best for everyone involved.
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