Phillies absolutely can’t even think about this Andrew Painter trade proposal

Phillies absolutely can’t even think about this Andrew Painter trade proposal originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Philadelphia Phillies have struggled to start the 2026 campaign at 8-10, something the organization will need to fix over the next few weeks to months. If the Phillies are hopeful that they can still be one of the elite teams in the National League, a lot of that will start by simply adding another player or two.

The Phillies have had some lackluster trade deadlines over the past few years, so Dave Dombrowski might not want to take that approach, but if he has nothing else to do, there won't be any hope for this organization long and short-term.

The one thing the Phillies have to decide is whether to move on from young players to acquire proven guys, though that doesn't always work out at the level fans typically hope for. In a recent trade idea, while Philadelphia would get back a very good player, an All-Star, it would require moving on from Andrew Painter.

To me, that's a no-go.

Phillies Acquire: CJ Abrams

Nationals Acquire: Andrew Painter, Aroon Escobar, Gabriel Rincones Jr.

“The Phillies would make this trade because CJ Abrams has broken out in 2026 (.356 AVG with 6 HR in 16 games) and now looks like a potential elite, long-term impact bat. They would be acting on the belief that he is already becoming a true star at a premium position, and that his combination of hitting ability, speed, and emerging power can help them immediately in a championship window,” Ryan Shea of SI wrote.

I like Abrams as a player and think he’d be a nice addition to this Phillies lineup if we're simply going off offensive help. However, giving up on Painter right now just makes absolutely no sense. Painter is proving already that he has the stuff to be a very good arm for a very long time, so moving on from him just shouldn't even be a thought, and I can almost say for certain that the Phillies aren't even entertaining the idea.