The Philadelphia Phillies are set to take on the Milwaukee Brewers in a new weekend series beginning Friday. Before the series opener, the Phillies placed Adolis Garcia on the 60-day IL with a torn lat after he injured himself in Wednesday’s contest.
Philadelphia is 37-31, but still looks up to the Atlanta Braves in the NL East. On Friday, the Phillies plan to use Andrew Painter in a different role. Philadelphia will also oppose Jacob Misiorowski, who is a candidate (along with Chris Sanchez) for the NL Cy Young. On Friday, the Phillies also announced a change in how they will utilize Andrew Painter in this game.
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Tanner Banks to be Used as Phillies Opener on Friday
GettyPHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – MAY 24: Andrew Painter #24 of the Philadelphia Phillies throws a pitch in the second inning during a game against the Cleveland Guardians at Citizens Bank Park on May 24, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)
Per a report from UnderdogMLB, the Phillies plan to use left-handed pitcher Tanner Banks as an opener in front of Andrew Painter for tonight’s game.
After Banks’ outing, Andrew Painter will likely pitch for as long as he can.
About three hours before first pitch of the Phillies-Brewers series, UnderdogMLB also wrote:
Phillies 6/12: K. Schwarber DH T. Turner SS B. Harper 1B B. Marsh LF A. Bohm 3B B. Stott 2B G. Rincones Jr. RF J. Realmuto C J. Crawford CF T. Banks SP
K. Schwarber DH T. Turner SS B. Harper 1B B. Marsh LF A. Bohm 3B B. Stott 2B G. Rincones Jr. RF J. Realmuto C J. Crawford CF
T. Banks SP
Some notables from the lineup release: Rincones Jr. gets the start in right field after the Adolis Garcia news.
As for Andrew Painter, he has struggled this season in his starts, so maybe this will be a nice change of pace to get him back on track.
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Andrew Painter this Season…
GettyPHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – JUNE 6: Andrew Painter #24 of the Philadelphia Phillies looks on after allowing a solo home run in the top of the third inning to Colson Montgomery #12 of the Chicago White Sox at Citizens Bank Park on June 6, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The White Sox defeated the Phillies 6-3. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
The Phillies drafted Andrew Painter in the first round of the 2021 MLB draft, and the way he dominated the minors, the Phillies believed he could turn out to potentially be the next Zack Wheeler, but Painter is learning the hard way how MLB can be a grind as a starter.
He made his MLB debut this season, and over 11 starts and 58 innings, Painter is 1-7 with an ERA of 6.21 and just 47 strikeouts. His ERA+ is 71 (29 marks lower than league average).
Again, maybe this change is what the doctor ordered for Andrew Painter. If not, the Phillies may need to send him back down to the minors to give him some confidence for the future. He’s still just 23-years-old.
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