Howard owns a 1.00 ERA and 38.2 percent strikeout rate through his first three starts of the year for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, including an eight-strikeout performance in his most recent outing Sunday.
The Phillies' plan all along seemed to be to manage Howard's innings carefully in the minors during the early part of the season before calling him up as a major-league rotation member later in the year. He's back on that path after making three big-league relief appearances in April when the team needed an extra arm. The young righty still isn't close to a true starter's workload, as he faced just nine batters in his first two Triple-A outings and 16 in his most recent one, so a promotion doesn't appear imminent, but the Phillies haven't gotten much from their fifth starter spot, meaning there won't be anyone blocking Howard once he's ready to go.