Phillies officially recall Painter for start Friday

Painter took the mound with a 2-0 lead and immediately gave it back. A leadoff double by Dylan Beavers got things started for the O’s and was followed by a two-run homer by Pete Alonso to draw things even at 2-2. Despite the rough start, Painter settled in to allow just one hit over his remaining five innings of work while striking out six batters, his most in any game since May 2nd against the Marlins. Painter was promoted from Triple-A to start tonight’s game. If he sticks around for another start, it will most likely come on Wednesday at home against the Nationals.

The Phillies won’t have another off day until August 14th, so they need a spot starter for today’s game. This also gives them an opportunity to showcase Painter as a potential trade chip at the deadline while the Phillies search for another reliable starting pitcher. The 23-year-old has struggled this year but is improving lately, allowing three runs in his last 11 Triple-A innings while striking out 14. Part of that success has been Painter looking at his metrics after a poor start on July 10th and realizing that too few of his secondary pitches were in the strike zone, allowing hitters to sit on his four-seam fastball. We’ll see if he can carry those lessons into his next MLB start.

The writing was on the wall after Painter was torched for six runs over two innings during Wednesday’s blowout loss to the Marlins. The 23-year-old top pitching prospect has a bright future but he’s struggled mightily in his first opportunity in the majors, posting a bloated 7.06 ERA, 1.66 WHIP and 53/24 K/BB ratio across 65 innings. He earns a ticket back to the minors after allowing five runs in three consecutive starts since June 6. He can be safely dropped in all re-draft fantasy formats at this juncture.

The rookie right-hander struck out three, walked two, and allowed six hits, including two home runs. His ERA now sits at a ghastly 7.06 through 65 major-league innings. A former top prospect, Painter had a 32.4 K-BB% and a 1.56 ERA in over 100 minor-league innings back in 2022. Arm injuries derailed him from there, and it’s fair to wonder if the Phillies will keep rolling him out to start in a win-now season. Things won’t get any easier if Painter sticks around for his next rotation turn against the Nationals in Washington.

Painter’s struggles continued here. Even as the Phillies tried to take some pressure off him by having him follow an opener, he still wasn’t even close to being effective. After mixing up his repertoire a good bit over his last few outings, he refocused on his fastball and slider and threw them a combined 77% of the time. Last time out, they combined for just 39% of his total pitches and hung around 50% for the two prior. An adjustment is something, but it didn’t lead to better results and mostly seemed due to the fact that he struggled to command anything else. Sadly, the former top prospect and his 6.43 ERA should not be trusted in any league at this time.

It was more of the same here for Painter in another poor outing. The White Sox jumped all over him for four runs in the first inning after their first four batters reached base via two walks, a hit batsmen, and a single. Then, he almost squirmed out of it with just two runs on the board before an 11-pitch battle with Tristan Peters ended with a two-out, two-run double. Then, he gave up two solo home runs in the third and was pulled with runners on second and third in the fifth before Tanner Banks cleaned up his mess. Despite mixing up his repertoire lately to try and hide his subpar fastball, good results have not followed for Painter who left this outing with a rough 6.21 ERA on the season. He’s scheduled to face the Brewers next time out.

Painter gave up six hits, walked two and struck out three. He fell to 1-5 with the loss. Painter has a 5.40 ERA on the season, though his 4.35 xFIP points to better days ahead. He was a popular pickup in fantasy, but he’s not contributing much in any of the categories right now. Painter’s WHIP is 1.46 and he has 40 strikeouts in 50 innings. Fantasy managers need to find a better option than using Painter against the Dodgers on the road next weekend.

A second straight very tidy outing from Painter saw him record his first quality start in only 69 pitches. Including last week’s start in Boston, he’s totaled 131 pitches while allowing three runs over 11 innings in his last two turns. In the two starts prior to that, he threw 187 pitches over 8 2/3 innings, giving up 11 runs in the process. Painter allowed three hits and five hard-hit balls tonight. He struck out three, settling for just three whiffs on 33 swings. But while strikeouts are nice, the Phillies surely prefer efficient six-inning outings for the moment. Painter will face the Guardians this weekend.

This was Painter’s first career start without issuing a walk. He was only at 62 pitches when pulled, but given how hard he’s been hit this year, it makes sense Philadelphia wanted him to end on a high note. The one run he allowed was a solo homer off the bat of Trevor Story. The rookie right-hander lines up for a home start against the Reds next time out.

Painter also issued three free passes on the night while striking out only two. The A’s got to him early in this one, with Shea Langerliers and Brent Rooker each blasting two-run homers in the opening inning. Josh Wilson added a two-run shot of his own during a three-run uprising in the third. The 23-year-old righty got 10 whiffs on 88 pitches on the night, posting a CSW of 24 percent. He’ll try to pick up the pieces and improve upon his 6.89 ERA, 1.71 WHIP and 30/12 K/BB ratio (32 2/3 innings) when he does battle against the Red Sox in Boston on Wednesday.