Showing improvement at Triple-A, Painter to start for Phillies in Baltimore (source)

PHILADELPHIA -- Phillies rookie right-hander Andrew Painter is in Baltimore, and he will pitch on Friday night against the Orioles, a source told MLB.com. The club has not confirmed the news.

Painter opened this season in the Phillies' rotation but was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on June 18 after posting a 7.06 ERA across 14 outings (12 starts) in the Majors. Painter has fared better at Triple-A, allowing two runs or fewer in all but one start.

In his most recent outing, against Indianapolis on Sunday, the 23-year-old Painter scattered five hits and allowed one run over six innings, striking out six without walking a batter.

Despite brief glimpses of his potential in his first stint with the Phillies, Painter generally struggled to command most of his pitches -- particularly his fastball.

A few years ago, that four-seamer had three-time All-Star Carlos Correa predicting Painter was bound for stardom. Fast forward four seasons -- two of which Painter missed entirely after undergoing Tommy John surgery -- and Major League opponents have hit .404 (38-for-94) with a .660 slugging percentage against that same pitch.

“It's gotten a little better than what it was, but still obviously not to the extent of what it was pre-[Tommy John surgery],” Painter said. “So just trying to make adjustments and figure out what's going to have the most success.”

Still, the Phillies expect big things from the No. 13 overall pick in the 2021 Draft.

“I don't think any of us doubt that he can pitch here, and I don't think there's anybody in our organization that doubts that he's going to be really good at some point,” Phillies interim manager Don Mattingly said. “And I think he feels that way, too. It's just a matter of ironing things out.”