Philadelphia Phillies Boss Explains Decision To Throw Star Prospect During AFL

Dave Dombrowski explains why the Philadelphia Phillies decided to send their top pitching prospect to the Arizona Fall League.

Nov 9, 2022; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Philadelphia Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski answers questions from the media during the MLB GM Meetings at The Conrad Las Vegas / Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images

While all of the attention is on what the Philadelphia Phillies are doing in the playoffs, the organization made some waves when it was revealed they were sending their superstar pitching prospect Andrew Painter to the Arizona Fall League.

The 21-year-old hasn't pitched in a competitive game since 2022 after he underwent Tommy John surgery during the summer of last season, and because he's been out of action for so long, there are questions about how he might look when he does return to the mound.

Before his injury, Painter was regarded as one of the best prospects in all of baseball.

After posting an eye-catching 1.56 ERA in 22 starts with 155 strikeouts and 25 walks over 103.2 innings pitched, the former first-round pick catapulted to stardom in the minor league ranks.

That year was his first full season of professional baseball, and was one that saw him reach the Double-A level for five starts where he gave up just eight earned runs across 28.1 innings.

Painter was ranked the sixth-best prospect by MLB Pipeline in 2023, but the unfortunate injury has kept him out of action since his breakout campaign earned him the designation of the Phillies' future ace.

So why is Philadelphia sending him to the Arizona Fall League?

"Our people feel that it would help him mentally knowing that he's OK to go out there and pitch and compete. And he wants to do that too," president of baseball operations said per Matt Gelb of The Athletic.

Painter was floated as a potential rotation option at some point in 2025 with the Phillies searching for someone who can hold down the fifth spot after Taijuan Walker regressed and the other young players in their pipeline don't look ready.

Dombrowski pumped the brakes on that notion.

"What we're going to have to figure out is how we get him to pitch next year. Because you'll still be limited with the number of innings he can pitch. And I don't know the exact number of innings at this point; even we haven't discussed that. But he's not going to be able to go out there like a big-league starter and pitch every five or six days and pitch a whole season and have 180 innings. He's going to be limited much more than that," he shared.

However, they are viewing him returning to the mound in the AFL as a step in the right direction, and one that will get his career back on track.