The Philadelphia Phillies are rolling in the National League East. With the New York Mets in free fall and fighting for a Wild Card spot, the Phillies have opened up a seven-game lead in the division. This allows them freedom in September to ensure players are healthy, like Zack Wheeler, and all of their other star players.
September also brings prospect call-ups, and the Phillies give their top prospects the luxury of playing with less pressure than, say, a Mets prospect called up during a tight playoff race. The Phillies sold away a good number of their prospect during the trade deadline, but they elected to keep their top pitching prospect.
Phillies Predicted to Call Up Andrew Painter
With September approaching, now would be an excellent time for the Phillies to call up their top prospect, Andrew Painter. He is the No. 10 overall prospect in baseball. The 6-foot-7, 22-year-old first-round pick in the 2021 MLB draft has quickly advanced through the minor leagues.
According to MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Sam Dykstra, Painter could be the one player the Phillies call up this September:
“Since the beginning of the year, it seemed like the plan was for the Phillies to manage Painterâs first year back from Tommy John surgery after missing all of 2023 and 2024 in order for him to contribute in Philadelphia down the stretch.
“But after a very solid start at Triple-A, itâs been a bit of a slog and heâs given up 14 earned runs in 13 1/3 innings over three August outings. The Phillies do need some pitching help, so if Painter can right the ship, thereâs still time for him to help the big club out.”
Despite the Tommy John Surgery, Painter has shown flashes of being productive in Triple-A. In 81.1 innings this season with LeHigh Valley, he has 82 strikeouts. The Phillies call him up and will refine him at the major-league level, despite his inflated ERA and high walk total.
What Can Andrew Painter Provide?
The Phillies already have a stacked rotation of quality arms, but calling up Andrew Painter would ease the pressure on him.
On the Phillies prospect page, this is MiLB.com’s assessment of Painter:
“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.
“Painter misses bats with all four offerings, and while his fastball command was understandably a bit scattered at times given his long layoff, he continued to astound with his ability to pound the strike zone thanks to a simple and repeatable delivery.”
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