ALLENTOWN, Pa. — In the aftermath of a seven-run outing in Triple A, Andrew Painter looked at his metrics. He was surprised by what he saw: His fastball, which opponents had a .583 average against that game, had produced its best underlying numbers since he underwent Tommy John surgery three years prior.
“But it was getting hit,” Painter said of his July 10 outing for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. “I go back and look, and I wasn’t throwing sweepers in-zone. I wasn’t throwing a changeup in-zone. My sliders were down for chase, so there was no threat of anything outside of the fastball to be in-zone. Guys were just sitting on it. … It’s really (important) just establishing some sort of off-speed or different offering that you can throw in-zone whenever you want.”
Painter, 23, had the latitude to learn these types of lessons in Triple A, where was set to make his sixth start this season on Friday. Instead, he will return to the major leagues for the first time since giving up six runs in two innings against the Miami Marlins on June 17. The move, first reported by NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury, was confirmed by a league source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because it had not been officially announced.
After a disastrous beginning to his major-league career, Painter finally was without the noise, the fanfare that has followed him much of his professional baseball life — from throwing an electric fastball in 2022 to Tommy John surgery to a roller-coaster 2025 in the minors. Producing a 7.06 ERA in 14 games in the majors will do that.
Two of Painter’s best Triple-A starts came back-to-back, as he allowed three runs and struck out 14 across 11 innings in his last two outings. Yes, it is a two-game sample in the minor leagues that was preceded by a seven-run outing in which he didn’t make it through three innings, but it’s also something to build on.
The Phillies had indicated Brian Keller, who pitched in bulk relief in the fifth rotation spot last week, would do the same Friday against the Baltimore Orioles. But instead they recalled Painter — even as they pursued a fifth starter, perhaps even a playoff-game caliber pitcher, ahead of Monday’s trade deadline.
So many Phillies personnel were devoted to getting Painter right — the major-league and Triple-A pitching coaches, the strength and conditioning staff. Many of them spent time poring over data during Painter’s first few days back in Allentown.
They identified a few problem areas. He was not moving on the mound as he did before surgery, falling toward the first-base side on his delivery. So much about the fastball — the movement, location, velocity — was off. His changeup wasn’t moving as consistently. His numbers against lefties were poor. Coaches went back and forth with Painter as they worked through it all.
“It’s not just … ‘Here’s what Andy needs to do,’” said Casey Weathers, the Phillies’ director of pitching development. “It’s, ‘Hey, Andy, what are you feeling about this stuff?’ It’s that bigger conversation, and he was awesome through it all. Very open, very engaged, asking intentional questions about how to accomplish everything.”
Andrew Painter has a 4.56 ERA in five starts at Triple A. He has struck out 25 and walked eight in 23 2/3 innings. (Dan Squicciarini / NurPhoto via Getty Images)
In five starts in Triple A, some of the issues were addressed, the Phillies say. Painter’s velocity and command have improved. His fastball velocity was 96.5 mph in the majors, and he threw one pitch above 99; his velocity in Triple A has averaged 97.2 mph, and he has touched 99 six times.
Perhaps the biggest difference-maker was addressing his delivery. When Painter pitched in the majors, his delivery typically involved multiple, slower steps rather than fluid movement. It wasn’t repeatable. So, his delivery has been reworked to preload his back leg, trying to keep his movement compact and powerful. He pointed to Milwaukee Brewers starter Jacob Misiorowski as one pitcher who is preloading his back leg out of the stretch, giving him better command.
“There’s more drive down the mound,” Painter said, “rather than letting the slope of the mound take you down it.”
Pounding the strike zone, Painter said, has also helped the fastball’s performance. He knows he needs to throw strikes early. He knows he needs to earn chase. None of this is a cure-all; his fastball was hit hard in the majors, largely because of poor location and movement. If it carries better — and he utilizes his secondary pitches better — perhaps this all will fall into place.
“I know it’s a lot easier said than done,” Painter said, “but pitching is a lot easier when you’re not walking guys. So (I want to) continue to establish that brand and be super aggressive in the zone early. Because then the hitters respond to that, the hitters notice that and the hitters become more aggressive.”
He has walked one batter over his last two starts. The trend represents a win for Painter and his coaches. But it is still a work in progress; Painter walked four in the start before those two.
Andrew Painter was optioned to Triple A in mid-June after 14 inconsistent outings with the Phillies. (Emilee Chinn / Getty Images)
As they’ve worked through changes, Phillies coaches have been impressed by Painter’s positivity. Lehigh Valley pitching coach Phil Cundari said he operates by one rule: “Performance is the truth.” He has seen a new maturity, a better energy with Painter in each start.
“You could look at a lot of the body language, whether it’s early in the game or first and third and one out,” Cundari said. “He’s had that situation a few times. It’s very different body language (from) last year. … He’s going on the attack, and I think you continue to attack when you really trust your stuff and you trust yourself. I would love to see more of that.”
David Howell, a pitching development coordinator hired last season, had not spent much time with Painter before his demotion, but the righty quickly made an impression.
“His aptitude to pick stuff up is pretty uncommon,” Howell said. “That’s what floored me the most. He’s a really good athlete who makes adjustments like it’s nothing.”
There have been typical adjustments as any pitcher makes on the fly: figuring out how to establish his fastball against lefties, then freezing them with a backdoor slider. And there have been bigger ones, like addressing his changeup. Painter also adjusted his split-change, adopting a circle-change grip — something he threw in 2022. His splitter grew inconsistent during his first stint in the majors, cutting more often than he would like. He could throw pitches back-to-back and the ball flight might be entirely different.
Painter, baseball in hand, demonstrated the evolution of his grips this week to The Athletic. One had the flight of a BP fastball. Another was good in bullpens but didn’t perform in a game. The grip he has settled on gives him a little more depth.
He has been forced to adapt after a brutal 14-game run in the majors. If anything, his last time in Lehigh Valley, in 2025, may have prepared him for it. Over 22 Triple-A starts that season, Painter often did not have his best stuff. Blisters affected his changeup. He was hit hard, especially by lefties. But he kept going, and he will keep going now.
Whatever Painter does from here, questions will remain until he consistently performs in the majors. The Phillies feel confident in his ability to be a good major-league pitcher.
So much was weighing on Painter when he was demoted. Poor outings piled up. Innings spiraled. In Allentown, in a minor-league ballpark patrolled by the Pork Racers and populated by children from summer camps screaming their lungs out, the external noise quieted.
While pitching during that run, he might have thought, “I’m trying to go glove side with a fastball. Let me get it there.” Now, the inner monologue has changed.
“Here’s a fastball,” Painter said. “I’m going to try to get it in that lane, and I’m just going to rip it. I’m going to throw it as hard as I can. If you get beat, tip your cap. But if you’re going to go down, you want to go down with your best stuff. And do you want to look back on that pitch and be like, ‘Could I have thrown that with a bit more conviction? Could I have been more confident in that pitch?’ That’s a huge part of it, too. If you go out and throw something you don’t have conviction in, you’re just set up for failure.”