PHILADELPHIA – Andrew Painter’s first pitch as a big leaguer was a fastball that blistered the zone at 97 mph. Four pitches later, he snapped off a curveball that James Wood whiffed through for Painter’s first career big league strikeout.
That set the tone for the highly anticipated debut of one of the top pitching prospects in the game, which took over 1,700 days to come to fruition.
“We have been waiting for awhile for this. So have our players,” Thomson said.
“Whether it’s Painter or Crawford, when those guys come up it’s exciting. They remember their first appearance or game in the big leagues and they were very excited for him. They can bring some energy to the club.”
The energy was palpable as Painter got stronger with each inning that passed.
With 30-40 family members and friends in attendance, along with 40,709 fans yearning to see Painter pitch at the big league level, his debut was certainly worth the wait.
The 22-year-old tossed 5 ⅓ innings, allowing four hits, one earned run, one walk and struck out eight batters on 84 pitches with 57 going for strikes, helping the Phillies snap a three-game skid in a 3-2 win against Washington.
At one point, Painter struck out five of six batters from the fourth to fifth innings, retiring 13 of his final 15 batters faced after allowing back-to-back singles to open up the second inning, in which he escaped.
“He was fantastic. He changed speeds, got back in the counts. Landed his curveball and slider. I thought he was really, really good,” Thomson said.
Offensively, the Phillies' lineup, which has struggled during the three-game skid, did just enough.
Kyle Schwarber crushed his second home run of the season to right field to give the Phillies their first lead in a game since Opening Day in the third while Adolis Garcia snuck a line drive over the right field wall for his first home run as a Phillie in the fourth to give Painter a 2-0 cushion.
Painter, who became the youngest Phillies starting pitcher to make an MLB debut since Ranger Suarez made his on July 26, 2018, and also the youngest Phillies starter to make his debut at Citizens Bank Park since Aaron Nola debuted on July 21, 2015, etched his name in the franchise history books.
His eight strikeouts were tied for the second-most in a debut in franchise history, falling one shy of matching Mick Abel’s nine that he had last season on May 18 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The right-hander mixed his pitches well and recorded his punchouts primarily with his secondary offerings, not with his plus-fastball that topped out at 98.7 mph and averaged 96.7 mph.
Of his eight strikeouts, three were with his changeup, two were on his slider and curveball each, and one was on with his fastball.
"If we can keep him healthy, this guy is going to be really good for a long time. He will have a great career. He's one of those upper-echelon guys with power and command. The future is bright for him," Thomson said of the team's prized pitching prospect.
Painter's night came to an end with one out in the sixth with a runner at first base. Thomson made his way out of the first base dugout to tell the rookie his terrific night was coming to a close.
After getting some pats on the chest from his skipper, Painter took long strides to the dugout, looking up to fans giving him a standing ovation.
“I just asked him if he enjoyed it,” Thomson said.
“He shook his head no, but then figured out what I said and shook his head yes. I just said make sure you tip your cap to the fan base.”
The Nationals added a run in the sixth and seventh innings to make it a 3-2 game late.
However, the Phillies bullpen held on with Brad Keller and Jhoan Duran keeping the Nationals off the board in the final two innings.
The Phillies will look to earn their first series win of the young season with the finale set for a Wednesday matinee. LHP Cristopher Sanchez (1-0, 0.00 ERA) takes the mound for the Phillies, while Washington will counter with RHP Cade Cavalli (0-0, 4.91 ERA).
First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.
