The Philadelphia Phillies retooled their roster this offseason in hopes of trying to make a deep playoff push this year.
While the organization brought back key players such as Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto, the team also chose to go in a different direction with starting pitching and the outfield. According to Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com, top prospect Andrew Painter is expected to take on a bigger role this upcoming year.
“Three years after MLB Pipeline ranked him as the top pitching prospect in baseball, Painter still hasn’t appeared in the Majors,” Harrigan wrote. “The righty appeared to be on a fast track to the big leagues after reaching Double-A as a 19-year-old in 2022, but he sprained his UCL the following spring and eventually underwent Tommy John surgery, missing all of ’24 as well. His MLB debut was further delayed as he struggled in his return to the mound last season. Philadelphia’s rotation depth has allowed the team to weather those setbacks, but Ranger Suárez’s departure as a free agent has made Painter — now MLB Pipeline’s No. 28 overall prospect — less of a luxury and more of a necessity going into the 2026 campaign.”
Painter is finally going to get his chance to pitch at the big league level. He has been blocked to this point by players such as Suarez and Jesus Luzardo, but Dave Dombrowski and Rob Thomson are finally giving him an opportunity to prove he belongs.
It’s a bit of a risk for a team that has World Series aspirations to rely on an unproven prospect to hold down one of the five rotation spots. However, the Phillies need a burst of youth in their roster, and Painter is expected to be one of the players that helps transition from now to the future.
More MLB: Mets Predicted to Win NL East Despite Questionable Offseason