Long Time Coming: Andrew Painter makes his Grapefruit League debut Sunday against the Yankees

Circle it. Sunday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. at BayCare Ballpark. Andrew Painter versus the New York Yankees. Three years in the making.

The last time Painter threw in a Spring Training game was March 1, 2023, exactly three years ago to the day. He went two innings against the Twins in Fort Myers, came out of it with a sore elbow, and ended up needing Tommy John surgery that cost him the entire 2023 and 2024 seasons.

March 1, 2023. Andrew Painter makes his MLB Spring Training debut with an electric outing against the Minnesota Twins.

March 1, 2026. Andrew Painter makes his second career Spring Training Start this afternoon at 1:05pm!

pic.twitter.com/KdFhmKE4nq

— Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) March 1, 2026

He was 20 years old at the time and had already established himself as the crown jewel of the Phillies pitching pipeline. Then he disappeared for two years.

The road back for Andrew Painter has not been perfectly smooth either. He impressed in the Arizona Fall League in 2024 and showed enough to maintain the prospect hype, but his 2025 season at Triple-A was up and down.

His command was inconsistent, he threw 118 innings in his first full professional season, and he never quite forced the organization’s hand to bring him to the majors. He goes into Sunday as the number two prospect in the Phillies system and the 28th best prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline.

He is also going into Sunday as the most likely option to fill the rotation spot opened up by Zack Wheeler’s absence. Wheeler had surgery in September for venous thoracic outlet syndrome and will not be ready for Opening Day on March 26.

Andrew Painter is almost certainly getting the ball somewhere in that opening rotation. Sunday is his first chance to show everyone what he looks like healthy and ready to go as a 22-year-old with something to prove.

Andrew Painter gets the start for the Phillies vs Yankees

Great day for some Painting 🎨 pic.twitter.com/z5SwNs8buI

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) March 1, 2026

The Cole Hamels comparison is going to come up and it should. In 2004, a 20-year-old Hamels who had never pitched above Single-A took the mound against the Yankees in his first Grapefruit League start at Legends Field in Tampa and struck out Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, and Tony Clark in order. All changeups.

That moment announced him to the world. Nobody is piling that kind of expectation on Andrew Painter before he throws a single pitch on Sunday, but every Phillies fan who was around for that Hamels start is going to be thinking about it.

If you are not in Clearwater, the game is on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

This is the one to watch.

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