Dave Dombrowski Details Why Phillies Didn’t Acquire Starting Pitcher

Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter have occupied those final two rotation spots, but whether they will help the Phillies get to the playoffs to begin with is still up in the air.

If Dombrowski and the front office were going to pull the trigger on a deal to acquire a starting pitcher, he made it clear that it would’ve had to have been an impactful pitcher who is a difference-maker, not just anyone.

“If we were going to do it and add somebody, they would have had to be significantly better, in our opinion, than Andrew [Painter], than just acquiring another arm.”

Regardless of the rotation being in good shape for the postseason, Philadelphia is currently in second place in the National League East and is 7.5 games back of the Atlanta Braves. They are gripping onto the final Wild Card spot by a thread, holding just a one-game lead over the San Diego Padres.

Both Nola and Painter have fallen below expectations this season so far. Nola has pitched to a 5.47 ERA with a 3-9 record in 24 starts this season, and is coming off a year in 2025 in which his ERA was over six with a 5-10 record in 17 starts.

Painter posted a 7.06 ERA in his first 14 starts of the year before he was sent down to Triple-A. He’s made three starts for the Phillies since the end of July and has given up two runs or fewer in all three of those outings.

While Philadelphia believes in Nola and Painter and has confidence in them, there are no guarantees as the bottom two slots in the rotation remain question marks.

“The choice came down to, do you end up getting a guy that’s a fifth starter that you don’t think is as good as your guy that you have now and option the guy you think has a better chance to win to help your depth,” Dombrowski said, “or, [you] do what we’re doing? And we figured we’d do what we’re doing.”

Dombrowski and the Phillies took a risk by not adding a starting pitcher at the deadline. Whether that decision works out in the end or ends up hurting them remains to be seen, as Philadelphia aims to chip away at its 7.5-game deficit in the division and maintain its spot in the Wild Card race.

Sign up for our free newsletter to receive the latest news and updates!