Phillies fans call for Andrew Painter demotion after latest brutal start

The Philadelphia Phillies are currently in second place in the NL East, but some players have struggled this season. Don Mattingly has supported Trea Turner as he has struggled this year.

Now, Phillies’ fans are hoping Mattingly does not support another struggling member of the team, Andrew Painter.

Painter struggled early and often in his start against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday, something that Matt Gelb of The Athletic noted.

“The Phillies have bullpen action in the second inning as Andrew Painter once again is getting hit around. The rookie’s spot in the rotation is tenuous,” Gelb posted on X, formerly Twitter.

In two innings of work, he gave up six hits and two walks while striking out three. He also gave up six runs in the game before being replaced between innings. This has led to fans calling for Painter to leave the rotation.

Do Andrew Painter a favor and send him down. This is a brutal watch.

— Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) June 17, 2026

There’s zero reason to keep Andrew Painter in the majors at this point.

— Tucker Bagley (@TBagleySports) June 17, 2026

Andrew Painter just looks overmatched. Not suggesting it will always be this bad, but this is clearly not working right now. Would only be human if it’s affecting his confidence. You don’t want the kid feeling like he’ll never be able to retire big-league hitters.

— Corey Seidman (@CoreySeidman) June 17, 2026

Painter was just 1-7 heading into this start, with a 6.43 ERA. He was also horrible in the first two appearances in the month of June. Against the Chicago White Sox on June 6, he gave up six runs in just four and two-thirds innings of work. Then, on June 12, against the Milwaukee Brewers, he gave up five runs in five innings of work.

This is the ninth time in 14 starts that he has given up three or more runs, and the seventh time he has given up four or more runs. It is also the fourth straight appearance that he has given up four or more runs.

The Phillies are currently 40-33 on the season, which places them in a wild-card spot in the National League. The Phillies are looking for the three-game sweep of the Marlins on Wednesday, but are down 6-4 after three innings of play.

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