Zack Wheeler tosses six more scoreless innings in the rain and the Phillies have the best 1-2 punch in baseball
Zack Wheeler pitched six scoreless innings in the rain Saturday night at Citizens Bank Park and the Phillies beat the Guardians 3-0 to snap a three-game losing skid.
Wheeler allowed just two hits and a walk while striking out six. In total, he notched 15 swings and misses while throwing a first pitch strike to 17 of 21 hitters. The Phillies are 26-26, back to .500, and 17-7 under Mattingly.
If anyone was still wondering whether Zack Wheeler would be the same pitcher after thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, stop wondering.
The Phillies have won all six starts since his return. Zack Wheeler has posted a 1.67 ERA with quality starts in five of the six outings. The man hasn’t lost a game since he came back. He pitched through a rain delay of nearly two hours, came out on a cold, wet night, and shut down one of the best lineups in the American League without breaking a sweat.
Zakc Wheeler and Cristopher Sanchez Together Are Absurd
The Phillies are 10-1 in games started by Wheeler and Sanchez this season. The duo has combined for a 1.06 ERA across those 11 starts. That’s not a stat you see from two pitchers on the same staff in the middle of a season.
That’s historically elite production from a one-two punch that is carrying this franchise on its back while the rest of the rotation figures itself out.
Friday night Sanchez threw eight shutout innings and ran his scoreless streak to 37 2/3 innings, the second-longest in franchise history. The Phillies lost that game 1-0 because the offense gave him nothing.
Saturday night Zack Wheeler threw six scoreless and the Phillies managed to scratch out three runs, which was more than enough. Back-to-back dominant starts from the top two pitchers in the rotation. The only difference was the offense showed up for one of them.
Zack Wheeler has talked for years about how the members of a rotation feed off each other and compete with each other. Sanchez throws eight shutout and Wheeler comes out the next night and matches him with six scoreless of his own. They’re pushing each other and the results are two pitchers who both belong in the Cy Young conversation.
The Offense Did Enough
Harper had three hits and scored two runs. Stott drove in two with a two-out single against Cleveland starter Slade Cecconi in the fourth. Garcia, dropped to eighth in the order, drew a bases-loaded walk in the sixth for the third run. Three runs isn’t a big offensive night but when Wheeler is dealing, three runs is plenty.
The formula continues to work. Elite starting pitching, enough offense to take a lead, hand it to the bullpen. Kerkering, Keller, and Duran completed the shutout.
Miserable Weather Conditions on Memorial Day Weekend
The game was delayed an hour and 56 minutes by rain before it even started. The cold, wet weather continued all night. The teams played through it because the Phillies had a flight to San Diego after the game and a day game Monday. With more rain in the Sunday forecast, getting this one in was the priority even if it meant playing in miserable conditions.
Wheeler didn’t care about the weather. His fastball sat at 94.4 mph, a tick below his 95 mph season average, and topped out at 95.9. His splitter was sharp early and Realmuto rode it all night. Seven swings and misses on the four-seamer and six on the splitter. The rain, the cold, the delay, none of it affected his execution. That’s what an ace does. He shows up regardless of the conditions and gives his team a chance to win.
Painter Goes Sunday for the Series Win
Andrew Painter starts the series finale Sunday as the Phillies go for the series win against Cleveland before heading to San Diego. Painter has been up and down all season but the last time we saw him, he threw five solid innings of two-run ball on just 62 pitches against the Reds.
If Painter can give the Phillies another quality outing and the offense provides more than three runs, the Phillies take the series and head to the West Coast with momentum.
Wheeler and Sanchez are doing everything they can. The rest of the roster needs to hold up their end. Ten wins in 11 starts from the top two pitchers in the rotation is a luxury most teams don’t have. The Phillies need to stop wasting it.
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