Phillies end three-game losing skid, ride all-weather Wheels to win in the rain originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
If you were wondering whether Zack Wheeler would still be Zack Wheeler post-surgery, your question has been answered over the last month.
He is.
Wheeler has made six starts since his recovery from surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome. The Phillies have won all of them.
The latest came Saturday night when he pitched six scoreless innings in a 3-0 win over the Cleveland Guardians at Citizens Bank Park.
Wheeler gave up just two hits, walked one and struck out six. He threw a first-pitch strike to 17 of 21 hitters. He generated 15 swings and misses, seven on his four-seam fastball and six on his splitter. That pitch was sharp early and catcher J.T. Realmuto rode it.
“I threw 22 splitters,” Wheeler said. “That’s probably a record for me.”
Wheeler said he had trouble harnessing the movement on some of his pitches early, but “J.T. got me through it.”
His fastball was down a tad from its 95-mph season average. It sat at 94.4 mph but topped out at 95.9.
Still, manager Don Mattingly was impressed with the way Wheeler was able to “bully” hitters with his heater.
“It’s a pretty amazing pitch,” Mattingly said.
Wheeler has registered a quality start in five of his six outings. The right-hander, who has two second-place finishes in NL Cy Young voting during his time with the Phillies, has yet to qualify for a spot among the league leaders in ERA, but his mark of 1.67 is impressive, just the same.
Wheeler’s Saturday Night Special followed Cristopher Sanchez’ Fantastic Friday. Sanchez pitched eight shutout innings, running his scoreless innings streak to 37 2/3 innings, second-best in franchise history, and lowering his ERA to a league-best 1.63. The Phillies, however, lost that game, 1-0.
While Sanchez received zero offensive support, Wheeler got two runs in the fourth and another in the sixth as the Phillies snapped a three-game losing streak and got back to .500 (26-26), heading into Sunday afternoon’s series finale against Cleveland.
Orion Kerkering, Brad Keller and Jhoan Duran completed the shutout.
“Those guys are a weapon,” Mattingly said of Wheeler and Sanchez. “You get outings like that, it helps keep your bullpen fresh and allows you to use guys where they’re supposed to be used.”
The start of the game was delayed one hour, 56 minutes by rain. The cold, wet weather continued throughout the night, but the teams played through it. With more bad weather forecast for Sunday and a flight scheduled to San Diego, followed by a day game Monday, the Phillies were eager to get the game in, even if it meant playing in icky weather.
Wheeler returned from the injured list on April 25 as the Phillies were struggling to win games. They dropped to 9-19 a day later, leading to Rob Thomson’s firing. Mattingly took over as skipper. The Phils are 17-7 under Mattingly. Since Wheeler’s return, the team is 10-1 in games started by Wheeler and Sanchez. The duo has combined for a 1.06 ERA in those 11 starts.
“I don’t know if there’s a better 1-2 punch in the game right now,” Bryce Harper said. “I don’t know. I really don’t think there is one.
“It’s been fun to watch. On any given night, when you can go (almost) 38 scoreless innings with Sanchy, then Wheels. It’s tough coming to the ballpark knowing you’re going to face those guys. And when (Jesus) Luzardo is going right and (Aaron) Nola is going right, it’s even tougher.”
Over the years, Wheeler has often talked about how the members of a rotation feed off each other and compete with each other. Cole Hamels used to talk about the same stuff. Intrastaff competition is real and it’s good for a team.
“You always try to beat the guy the day before you,” Wheeler said. “Sanchy is pretty hard to beat right now, but you’ve got to go out there and try. We always say that. We have a good group of guys to do that little competition within ourselves. But what a run (Sanchez) has been on. It’s pretty special. Almost unmatchable.”
Offensively, the Phillies were led by Harper, who had three hits and scored a pair of runs. Bryson Stott drove home two runs with a two-out single against Cleveland starter Slade Cecconi in the fourth. Adolis Garcia, dropped to eighth in the batting order, drew a bases-loaded walk in the sixth inning for the Phillies’ third run.
The pitching did the rest. Particularly Wheeler.
“Zack’s been amazing,” Mattingly said. “Getting to see this firsthand is fun to watch. Where he’s come from. Everything.”
Andrew Painter starts Sunday as the Phillies try to win a series.
