Philadelphia Phillies' Top Prospect Gets Early Season Plan Outlined

Philadelphia Phillies top prospect Andrew Painter will not be with a minor league affiliate at the outset of the season. Instead, he'll throw in extended spring training games. That will begin in the next few weeks, according to Dave Dombrowski, the Phillies' president of baseball operations.

Andrew Painter is progressing well. He is going to pitch in extended spring training games in a couple weeks, Dave Dombrowski said.
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) March 24, 2025

Painter, 21, is ranked as the No. 8 prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline. However, he hasn't pitched in an affiliated game since 2022. He felt discomfort in his right elbow during spring training of 2023 and ended up needing Tommy John surgery. That cost him all of 2023 and 2024, though he did make an appearance at the Arizona Fall league in 2024.

He's a weapon that could help the Phillies this year, but they are going to closely monitor his workload. If they want him to help them down the stretch, they'll have to hold him back now. He did go 6-2 in his 2022 season, reaching as high as Double-A. He struck out 155 batters in 103.2 innings .

The following comes from a portion of his MLB.com prospect profile:

During his time in the Fall League, Painter showed that in many ways he was the same premium prospect with a legitimate four-pitch mix, albeit with a little twist. His plus heater was touching 100 mph again and averaged 97 in the fall with plenty of ride up in the zone, he dropped in his low-80s curve for strikes and his above-average changeup got better as the fall season wore on. The new wrinkle for the 6-foot-7 right-hander was a harder slider with cutter-like action thrown in the upper 80s, replacing what had been more of a sweeper.

Related MiLB Stories