Although Andrew Painter is regarded as one of baseball’s premier pitching prospects, it’s reasonable to say he hasn’t yet performed at a high level in Triple-A.
That said, it’s difficult to place much blame on the young right-hander, given that he’s returning from a serious injury and has seen limited action on the mound in recent years.
To be fair to Painter, he still needs significantly more innings to fully find his rhythm and get a true sense of where he stands on the mound.
That’s part of the reason — among others — why he hasn’t joined the Phillies yet. However, there’s still a widespread belief around the league that he’ll make his MLB debut at some point this season.
Some have speculated that could happen after the All-Star break, though that timeline might be optimistic, especially considering his 4.97 ERA at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, despite recording 55 strikeouts over 50.2 innings.
Despite some of the ugly signs from the youngster, it was reported by Matt Gelb of The Athletic that while the Phillies have made him untouchable in the past, and some have considered the idea of moving him for a star, it still remains very unlikely that he’ll be traded.
“When the Phillies progressed in trade talks with the Chicago White Sox for Garrett Crochet last summer, they were steadfast in deeming Andrew Painter untouchable. They have held firm on that stance this July. But everyone else in the organization, according to league sources, might be available to varying degrees,” he wrote.
It’s a promising sign that the Phillies aren’t willing to give up on Painter just yet.
Sure, the struggles have been real, and it’s something they have to consider, but the reality of the situation here is that he’s so young and his stuff is so good that even if it takes a bit for him to figure it out, these type of pitchers typically find success at the highest level.
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