Philadelphia Phillies Reveal Updated Timeline for Andrew Painter's MLB Debut

The Philadelphia Phillies have now given an updated timeline for when Andrew Painter is going to make his Major League debut.

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

The Philadelphia Phillies and their fans are patiently waiting to see the Major League debut of superstar pitching prospect Andrew Painter.

When he was selected 13th overall in 2021 draft, perhaps nobody was quite expecting him to take the minor league world by storm when he posted a 1.56 ERA across 22 starts with 155 strikeouts in 103 2/3 innings pitched during the 2022 campaign.

Painter immediately vaulted up the prospect rankings and it seemed like he would join the Phillies' rotation and be a future ace alongside Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola.

But, the rising star had to undergo Tommy John surgery, causing him to miss two straight seasons before he returned to the mound in competitive action for the first time in this year's Arizona Fall League.

Once he settled in, the right-hander reminded everyone just how talented he is on his way to winning the Pitcher of the Year award.

President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski already stated that it's a matter of when, not if, Painter makes his Major League debut in 2025, but with him being on a pitch and innings limit, the question becomes what time during the campaign he's going to appear for Philadelphia.

Some rumblings were posted in an initial report from a team insider, but after some speculation, more concrete plans were reported by Matt Gelb of The Athletic.

"Phillies plan to save Andrew Painter's innings for 'July-ish,'" the insider relayed from Dombrowski, also adding, "Painter will throw but not pitch games in spring training, then build in minors at some point."

Well, that seems to answer it.

The July timeline always seemed like the most logical route for the franchise to take since they would want to save him for the latter stages of the season and playoffs if he hasn't used up all of his innings before that point.

Painter will be a major addition to this Phillies rotation if his stuff translates to the MLB, and following their acquisition of Jesus Luzardo, the idea of having six high-level starters in the second half of the season is tantalizing.