Cautionary tales
The worst-case outcome? It isn’t Tommy John surgery. That may not be ideal, but it’s much closer to a rite of passage than it is a significant career obstacle. Much worse is for Painter’s elbow problems to linger.
Jacob deGrom, who had Tommy John surgery in 2010 after 26 innings in rookie ball and sat out 2011, missed the last three months of the 2021 season after being diagnosed with a UCL sprain. He did not return to the mound until August of the following season, thanks to a shoulder injury that developed during his return from the elbow.
Last month, deGrom was held out of his first workout with the Texas Rangers as the result of forearm tightness. In 2019, Chris Sale suffered a UCL injury in August and eventually needed surgery the following March.
For Painter and the Phillies, the future is a far more important consideration than the present. The goal can no longer be to have him in the rotation this season.
Rather, the goal is to have him right whenever he gets there.
Both parties are fortunate to have Scott Boras involved in the process. Painter’s agent has taken a lot of heat over the years, but there’s nobody in the world you’d rather have as a partner in attempting to chart the optimal long-term course for a player. He is a fierce advocate for his players, one who has invested plenty of resources in the study of performance and longevity.
“I have extensive studies on young pitchers with extreme velocity at young ages,” Boras said. “Andrew is aware and understands his development requires great attention and patience so his rare skill extends throughout a long MLB career.”
It’s a reality the Phillies were going to need to confront even if Painter broke camp with the team.
To a certain degree, anything they got from him this season was best viewed as a value-add. Whatever happens four weeks from now, they should continue to operate as if they will be without it.