With the 13th pick in the 2021 MLB Draft on Sunday Night, the Phillies selected Andrew Painter, an 18 year old, right-handed pitcher out of Calvary Christian Academy (FL). The draft started off on a surprising note from the first pick, with the Pittsburgh Pirates taking Henry Davis, an unexpected first overall pick. That would set up the night to go differently as predicted, with big names falling down the board. The Phillies would get their guy at 13, a monster right handed pitcher who can sling the baseball.

Andrew Painter

Andrew Painter is a 6’7 right handed pitcher, who screams pitcher the minute you look at him. The Phillies took a chance on a high school pitcher for the second year in a row, taking Painter just months after drafting Mick Abel. Painter has a ton of upside to his game, being a dominant force on the mound. The future could be bright with young arms for the Phillies if these two stay on track to be as special as predicted.

Andrew Painter has four solid pitches to his game. His fastball sits mid 90s, with two breaking balls and an impactful changeup in his arsenal of pitches as well. The once top prospect in his class, Andrew had all eyes on him throughout his middle years of high school. Painter finished his high school senior season with a 0.31 ERA, and held his opponents to a .119 batting average on the year.

High school stats aren’t something crazy to dig into, strictly based on the inconsistency of teams played, the level of talent, and more. But these stats are just absurd. Pitching a combined 0.78 ERA over your four years of high school ball doesn’t happen that much. Painter was committed to the University of Florida, along with right hander Chase Petty out of Mainland NJ. After being drafted in the first round, Painter will now head straight to the minors to start his road to the majors.

The one speculation about Andrew Painter, and young guys in general, is that Painter is just 18 years old. The risk for taking young arms straight out of high school is always there, due to lack of serious knowledge about their game. Translation to professional ball does not always go smoothly for high school pitchers, but the special ones seem to never have an issue. If a team sees something in a guy, they’re going to take him, no matter the circumstances, and that’s exactly what the Phillies did last night.

Everything seems so smooth for Painter the minute he steps on the mound. His windup is simple, but impactful. His pitches have some serious movement on them, and his corner painting is phenomenal. Andrew Painter is a stud, and if everything goes in the Phillies favor, he should be up pitching with the Phillies every five days in the future.

The Phillies next pick will be pick number 49 on Monday, with the draft starting back up at 7 PM EST. The Home Run Derby will be going on at that time, with Day 3 of the Draft concluding on Tuesday at noon. It was a great day for the Philadelphia Phillies, winning a series against the AL East leading Red Sox, finding their way back to .500 at the All Star Break, and getting their guy Andrew Painter with the 13th pick.

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