Can Phillies' Andrew Painter bounce back after dreadful start?

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Andrew Painter has had a rough start to his major league career, which usually prompts an option to Triple-A. 

Despite his struggles — the 23-year-old is 1-7 with a 6.21 ERA and 1.57 WHIP and is tied for the second-most home runs allowed for qualified rookies (11) — the Phillies are sticking with their young right-hander. According to interim manager Don Mattingly (h/t Jeff Kerr of 97.3 ESPN), Painter will make his next start, which will be Friday in Milwaukee versus the Brewers.  

Andrew Painter is benefiting from a lack of starting pitching depth in the Phillies organization

The Phillies have an off day on Thursday before Painter's start in Milwaukee, which could prompt a move to skip his start, but Mattingly has vetoed that idea. 

“Not really,” Mattingly said, per MLB.com's Paul Casella. “I think the situation we're in with our starters, we don't sit here with four or five guys in Triple-A that you can bring up at any time and fill in a spot. We want to make sure we take care of all our starters with those off-days.”

Painter's rough outing versus the Chicago White Sox — 4 2/3 innings, eight hits, six earned runs, two home runs, one hit batter, two walks and four strikeouts on 93 pitches (63 strikes) — is one in a string of bad outings. Before his first start in June, Painter was winless (0-4), had his second month with a 6.00+ ERA (April: 6.27, May: 6.14) and walked 11 in 29 1/3 innings.

However, as Mattingly alluded to, the Phillies don't have options to turn to down on the farm. The Phillies have two options, right-handers Jean Cabrera and Alan Rangel, who won't scare opposing lineups more than Painter has. 

Cabrera has pitched poorly and was reassigned from Triple-A Leigh Valley to Double-A Reading on May 12 for his performance. The 24-year-old with Lehigh Valley was 1-2 with a 9.32 ERA and a .333 batting average against in seven starts, while he's 1-2 with a 12.21 ERA and .426 BAA in four starts with Reading. 

Rangel has performed far better, but won't blow hitters away, as he is a right-hander who throws over the top and sits in the low to mid-90s. In 12 games (nine starts), the 28-year-old is 3-4 with a 3.73 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. 

Rangel is coming off one of his best starts of the season, tossing six innings, allowing three hits, two earned runs, walking one and striking out eight on June 6. The native of Hermosillo, Mexico, would be in line to start on Friday if the Phillies decided to remove Painter. 

Painter could see himself bounce back against the Brewers, as he will be squaring off against Cy Young favorite Jacob Misiorowski. "The Miz" is 7-2 with a 1.50 ERA and went seven innings, allowing zero earned runs (one run scored) and striking out eight on 98 pitches (62 strikes).