Andrew Painter is expected to make his MLB Debut at some point in 2025. (Cheryl Pursell)
CLEARWATER — Andrew Painter answered the most important question of Spring Training Thursday — he prefers to be called by his given name, as opposed to Andy.
"I go by Andrew out there," Painter said.
Noted. And file that away, because while Painter isn't expected to pitch at all in the Grapefruit League, there's a lot of excitement about his potential to make an impact for the team at some point this summer, with president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski pointing to July as the loose target date for when the Phillies plan to "turn him loose more."
For his part, Painter is excited to be back healthy. Two seasons ago, he appeared on track to make the Phillies Opening Day starting rotation as a 19-year-old. But then he suffered an elbow injury that eventually required Tommy John surgery, sidelining him for the entire 2023 and 2024 seasons. Now 21, Painter is happy to be through the worst of it.
"I mean, awesome to be back here, right? Obviously, 2023 was super exciting coming into camp, blow the elbow, just super disappointing," Painter said. "But the past two years, I think have been very good, both from a physical and a mental standpoint. I'm super excited, super happy to be back."
Obviously, there's a major physical component when you're rehabbing an injury, but when you go from the center of attention in Spring Training 2023 to sort of out-of-sight-out-of-mind for close to two years, there's definitely a mental battle to be fought as well.
So who did Painter lean on as he worked through some of the tough times — physically or mentally — during his rehab?
"[Phillies rehab/complex pitching coordinator] Aaron Barrett," Painter replied. "Aaron's our pitching coordinator, specifically throughout rehab. A guy who has kind of been through it all, so he was kind of my guardrails throughout the process."
Andrew Painter has hit 99 three times and struck out Bryce Eldridge to end his first inning back. pic.twitter.com/sYIYRUD7UR
Phillies fans got a reminder of just how special Painter could potentially be when he pitched in the Arizona Fall League last October. He struck out 18 batters and posted a 2.30 ERA over 15 2/3 innings pitched. It's not unusual for pitchers to struggle when they first return to the mound after Tommy John surgery, but Painter didn't skip a beat, winning Arizona Fall League Pitcher of the Year.
Given how well he pitched over the small sample size in the AFL, there has to be a part of Painter that's champing at the bit to put the red pinstripes back on and pitch against Major League competition this season and remind his teammates why there's so much buzz around him.
For a little while longer, Painter will have to suppress that urge.
"Yeah, I mean we have a plan in place and I trust the medical staff and everything they want to do," Painter said. "So I'm just kind of showing up here every day and listening to them."
Painter watched how the Pittsburgh Pirates managed phenom Paul Skenes last season, having the former No. 1 overall pick open the season with seven starts at Triple-A before promoting him to the majors, where he won NL Rookie of the Year and was a finalist for the NL Cy Young Award.
There were those who thought the Pirates were bringing Skenes along a little too slowly, but it's hard to argue with the results that they got. The Phillies will have to be even more cautious with Painter. Skenes wasn't coming off of Tommy John surgery like Painter is. Skenes also wasn't pitching for a team that expects to play deep into October.
Aaron Nola to @TimKellySports on his excitement to see and work with Andrew Painter. pic.twitter.com/xuPEJpFqOd
But when the Phillies do finally turn Painter loose this summer, he'll have a chance to join a team with World Series aspirations. The Phillies already appear to have one of the best rotations in baseball with Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sánchez, Ranger Suárez and Jesús Luzardo. They may have to get creative in finding a spot for Painter if all five of those arms are healthy when the summer rolls around. But imagine adding the 6-foot-7 righty into the mix down the stretch.
"Yeah, super exciting, but you know at the end of the day, still got a lot of work to be done," Painter said. "And like you said, I've gotta pace myself. So that's kind of where I'm at, just gotta be where my feet are."
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