Phillies prospect Andrew Painter tops out at 100 mph in AFL start, his first since 2023 elbow surgery
Painter said the results "weren’t exactly what I wanted,” but the most important thing was how he felt. "The arm’s healthy and that was the biggest takeaway."
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Top Phillies pitching prospect Andrew Painter took the mound in a game on Saturday for the first time since undergoing Tommy John elbow surgery in July of 2023. Pitching for the Glendale Desert Dogs in the Arizona Fall League, Painter topped out at 100 mph in his two innings, allowing three hits, two runs, a home run and one walk, striking out two on 29 pitches.
“Obviously, the results weren’t exactly what I wanted,” said Painter, the Phillies’ first-round pick in 2021. “But the arm’s healthy and that was the biggest takeaway. Everything felt like it was coming out good. I felt like my old self, so that’s all I can really take away from that.”
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Painter entered 2023 as MLB Pipeline’s best pitching prospect, with a shot at cracking the Phillies’ starting rotation to open the season. He made his spring training debut against the Twins on March 1, 2023 and soon after was shut down with a sprained UCL. Four months later, the Phillies announced Painter would undergo Tommy John elbow surgery.
In recent weeks, Painter had been throwing live batting practice.
He only needed nine pitches to complete a perfect first inning, sitting the Scottsdale Scorpions’ top three hitters down in order.
Among the hitters Painter faced was New York Mets second baseman and outfielder Jeff McNeil. He played in two AFL games over the weekend, completing a rehab assignment in anticipation of rejoining his club in Los Angeles on Sunday for Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Dodgers. Painter got McNeil to fly out to left field before striking out top San Francisco Giants prospect Bryce Eldridge to complete a clean inning.
“It was cool,” Painter said. “I thought they had a really good lineup, but it’s the same approach as everyone else. I still gotta go out there and do my job and pitch to my strengths.”
Painter ran into trouble in the second inning. He left a hanging slider up in the zone, which Detroit Tigers first base prospect Josue Briceno launched for a 446-foot home run to lead off the inning. Painter walked the next batter, Mets outfielder Drew Gilbert, on four pitches, before giving up a single to Pittsburgh Pirates outfield prospect Sammy Siani.
Painter induced a double play from Charlie Szykowny, but was unable to keep the Scorpions from tacking on another run, as San Francisco’s Kervin Pichardo rocketed a deep RBI double into the power alley in left-center, scoring the inning’s second run.
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Painter featured his typical four-pitch mix on Saturday, which includes a fastball, slider, curveball and slider. The 21-year-old relied mostly on his heater; 18 of his 29 pitches were fastballs. Painter’s fastball sat between 97 and 99 mph, and he hit 100 mph three times in his first outing of the fall.
“I feel good,” Painter said. “(I’m) a little sore, but we’ll bounce back [Sunday]. The big thing is, I’m healthy. I got the first one under my belt, and (I) just (need to) build off it.”
Painter is expected to pitch 20 total innings in the AFL. The Phillies planned for Painter to toss two on Saturday, with hopes of ramping him up in the coming weeks. The AFL’s season runs until Nov. 16 and features some of the best minor league prospects in the sport.
Painter told reporters postgame that he does not know when he will pitch next, but he’s excited to be back.
“Obviously, baseball has been my thing, and it’s something that I have loved,” Painter said. “So getting that taken away from me, I think it made me appreciate the game so much more. I just really look forward to any time I get to be on the field.”
If everything goes well, Painter should be in the mix for the Phillies sometime during the 2025 season. For now, he’s just embracing the opportunity he has been given.
“(It’s) a new chapter,” Painter said. “It’s a new elbow. I’m a new person now. The end goal is to pitch in the big leagues and pitch in the big leagues for a while. It’s a good balance of obviously knowing where your feet are at, [and] knowing that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.”