Andrew Painter’s first run in the majors didn’t go as planned. The Phillies have optioned the 23-year-old right-hander to Triple-A Lehigh Valley after a setback in Wednesday’s loss to the Marlins, pausing his pitching timeline and leaving the team to figure ou
When Andrew Painter stepped into the majors, expectations were high. By Wednesday afternoon, after another difficult outing in the Phillies’ loss to the Marlins, those questions had only grown sharper.
The Phillies responded quickly. Shortly after the setback, they optioned Painter to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He will not pitch in a game for the next seven to 10 days, and the plan for now is simple: extra bullpen work before he takes the mound for the IronPigs.
Dave Dombrowski, the Phillies president of baseball operations, sat in the home dugout at Citizens Bank Park the day after the decision trying to turn uncertainty into something actionable.
“It’s difficult,” Dombrowski said of the move to send Painter down. “But [we’ve] sent many good pitchers down, many good players down, and they go down and they get reset and come back and do well. So that’s what our goals are, and what we think will happen with him.”
The timing matters. Painter won’t be available immediately, which shifts the Phillies’ immediate planning problem from “what’s next for him?” to “who takes his rotation spot when it comes up next week?”
For the next stretch, the hope is that Painter can regain something he’s been struggling to consistently find: execution that holds up once the game starts.
The Phillies have already tried addressing his mechanics. They’ve implemented ideas in recent bullpen sessions and have seen progress at times. Dombrowski said the next challenge is making sure that progress carries into real innings.
“But you have to carry it over to the game,” he acknowledged.
Painter, for his part, has not been treating the trip as a mystery he can blame on luck. Dombrowski described their conversations as direct and focused.
“He was understanding,” Dombrowski said. “Sitting there talking to him, it wasn’t like he said, ‘Why?’ He said, ‘I have to get better, I have to do better. I understand that. I’m ready to go out and do what I need to do.’”
Even so, Painter’s setbacks have hit hard—particularly after recent outings. The right-hander said his confidence hadn’t wavered much of the season, but after Wednesday, he finally put the moment into clearer terms.
After his latest turn, Painter said it was “about as good as it can right now under the circumstances.” He added: “I’m just trying to find out who I am as a pitcher right now.”
The question behind that sentence is one the Phillies are asking too. They still believe Painter can be an impact pitcher for the franchise, and interim manager Don Mattingly said the organization expects that to come later—once he irons things out.
“I think it was the best thing for him,” Mattingly said. “ … He’s not the first guy this has happened to. Probably 90% of guys are coming and going back. Very few guys just come and stick, and never see the Minor Leagues again.”
The immediate reality is that the early results have been difficult to ignore. Painter entered Wednesday’s stretch having posted a 7.06 ERA over his first 65 big league innings. The Phillies also believe the issue has been more than just timing or the usual rookie adjustments.
The trouble has shown up most in command—especially with his fastball. Painter said the improvements have been real, but not enough.
“It’s gotten a little better than what it was, but still obviously not to the extent of what it was pre-[Tommy John surgery],” Painter said. “So just trying to make adjustments and figure out what’s going to have the most success.”
Dombrowski added that recovery can take time.
“Sometimes it takes a while to come back [from Tommy John] and be quite as effective.”
Mechanics are at the center of that explanation. While plenty has been made of Painter’s ability to generate extension—particularly from a 6-foot-7 pitcher—the Phillies say part of what has looked like a limitation can also come from an indirect path to the plate.
“That’s not always the case, but therein lies another problem: Painter’s delivery hasn’t been consistent from pitch to pitch,” Dombrowski said.
He pointed to a specific contrast: when Painter has adjusted his delivery to go more directly to the plate instead of spinning off, he has had more life.
“Most of it’s delivery-oriented is what it comes down to,” Dombrowski said. “Because when he’s done some things with his delivery — going more directly to the plate rather than spinning off — he’s had more life. And you see it at times … but not on a consistent basis.”
Inconsistent delivery has contributed to abbreviated starts, with Wednesday’s outing becoming the latest example. Painter’s appearance ended after two innings.
With the bullpen again taxed, the Phillies called on two fresh arms—Bryse Wilson and Seth Johnson—for Thursday’s series opener against the Mets. Left-hander Tanner Banks was also optioned to Lehigh Valley alongside Painter.
That brings the rotation question into focus. When Painter’s turn comes around next week, the Phillies will have decisions to make.
Wilson is an option, but not if he’s needed out of the bullpen this weekend. Another possibility would be a bullpen game, though Mattingly made it clear that isn’t the preferred path.
“For me, it’s not really the best scenario, because you’re taxing your bullpen every five days,” Mattingly said. “But if the guy’s starting and going out and only throwing four or five [innings], it’s kind of the same thing — so they’re not terrible, but I prefer not to.”
Either way, the Phillies are trying to keep the disruption temporary while they work through what Painter needs. Mattingly said no one in the organization doubts he can pitch here long-term.
“I don’t think any of us doubt that he can pitch here, and I don’t think there’s anybody in our organization that doubts that he’s going to be really good at some point,” Mattingly said. “And I think he feels that way, too. It’s just a matter of ironing things out.”
Andrew Painter Phillies Lehigh Valley IronPigs Tommy John surgery Dave Dombrowski Don Mattingly Mets Marlins rotation spot