Andrew Painter May Have Had His Best Phillies Performance Yet

The St. Louis Cardinals were no match for Philadelphia Phillies Andrew Painter.

Aug 22, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Andrew Painter (24) throws a pitch during the seventh inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

One of the reasons there have been so many concerns about the Philadelphia Phillies' pitching staff this year is the poor play of starting right-hander Andrew Painter.

The 23-year-old rookie came into Saturday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals with an ERA of 6.43 and a 2-8 record, and the team has usually been at a distinct disadvantage when he has been on the mound.

But there he has also shown some short spurts of promise, and Saturday was a prime example of that. In fact, it may have been Painter's best performance of the season so far.

He pitched seven innings, forced 20 swings and misses, recorded eight strikeouts and was on the mound for 103 pitches. All of those were career highs, and he attained those numbers with a variety of pitches.

Andrew Painter is finding groove for Phillies

Aug 22, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Andrew Painter (24) throws a pitch during the seventh inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Overall, Painter allowed just one run, and on the other side, Philadelphia's bats were hot as the team notched a 12-3 victory, its eighth in a row at the time.

His stellar play has helped the Phillies become the hottest team in Major League Baseball right now. With a 73-59 record, they have pulled to within 3.5 games of the Atlanta Braves in the National League East, and suddenly, a first-place finish appears to be within their reach.

They will begin a four-game home series versus the Braves on Sept. 4.

Andrew Painter 🔥🔥

8 strikeouts tonight and gave up just one run in 7 innings pic.twitter.com/d1OUnRl5Wl

— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) August 23, 2026

Painter is very far from a finished product, or even a proven one, at this point. But he has shown a bit of improvement lately. In his last five games, he has given up more than two runs only once, and he has a 3.65 ERA in those outings. On Saturday, he maintained his command and velocity throughout his stint.

"The biggest thing was just trying to be in the zone a lot, force their hand," Painter said, via Dave Uram of SportsRadio WIP. "Did a good job at that tonight. Zero walks -- something that I'm trying to go out there and do every time."

When Philadelphia took Painter with the No. 13 pick in the 2021 draft, it hoped it had chosen someone who would at least be a reliable starter. He showed early promise while playing Single-A and Double-A ball, but his ERA dropped significantly while playing for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs last year.

Andrew Painter talks about his seven-inning performance vs the Cardinals. pic.twitter.com/61MAQgFd0g

— Dave Uram (@MrUram) August 23, 2026

Sometimes it takes pitchers a little while to consistently find their range and become studs. That was certainly the case with Cristopher Sanchez, who had a 4.97 ERA as a rookie in 2021 and a 5.63 ERA the following year. But since then, he has been rock-solid and has made the All-Star team twice.

The Phillies would certainly be thrilled if Painter follows that kind of trajectory, especially with Zack Wheeler planning on retiring at the end of his current contract, which runs through 2027.

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