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Zack Wheeler - Phillies - Philadelphia Baseball Review
PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies spent nearly two hours Saturday night waiting for the rain to stop. Once the game finally started, Zack Wheeler made sure Cleveland spent most of the evening waiting for a hit that never seemed to arrive.

That has become a familiar feeling lately whenever Wheeler takes the mound.

Behind another dominant outing from their ace and a pair of timely two-out swings from Bryson Stott, the Phillies snapped a three-game losing streak with a crisp 3-0 victory over the Guardians at Citizens Bank Park.

It was the type of game the Phillies desperately needed.

Not flashy. Not explosive. Just clean baseball behind elite starting pitching.

And right now, Wheeler is pitching as well as anyone in the sport.

The right-hander worked six scoreless innings, allowing just two hits while striking out six. Cleveland forced him to labor early, pushing his pitch count to 99 by the end of the sixth inning, but the Guardians never truly threatened him. Wheeler attacked the strike zone, overpowered hitters when necessary and once again looked completely in control of the game’s tempo.

Across his last three starts, Wheeler has allowed just one run in 20 1/3 innings.

His ERA now sits at 1.67.

Considering where Wheeler was only months ago, that number feels remarkable.

The Phillies entered this season hoping Wheeler would eventually resemble himself again after dealing with a blood clot and thoracic outlet surgery. Instead, he has immediately returned looking like the same pitcher who has anchored this rotation for years.

Maybe even sharper.

Every contender eventually reaches a point in the season where it simply needs its ace to stop the bleeding. Saturday felt like one of those nights.

The Phillies had scored just two runs over their previous three games entering play. The offense again spent much of the evening searching for consistency against Cleveland starter Slade Cecconi. But unlike recent nights, they capitalized when opportunities finally appeared.

That moment arrived in the fourth inning.

Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm opened the frame with consecutive singles before Brandon Marsh moved both runners into scoring position with a ground ball to first. With two outs, Stott punched a line drive back through the middle to score both runners and finally give the Phillies room to breathe.

It continued what has quietly become an outstanding month for Stott offensively. His 20 RBIs in May lead the National League, and increasingly, he has become one of the lineup’s most dependable situational hitters.

The Phillies added another insurance run in the sixth, though even that inning reflected the frustrating grind this offense continues to endure.

Harper singled again. Bohm walked. Stott drew a free pass to load the bases. But after J.T. Realmuto struck out for the second out, it was Adolis García — mired in an ugly slump — who managed to force across a run with a bases-loaded walk.

It was not dramatic.

But with Wheeler pitching the way he was, it hardly needed to be.

The bullpen handled the rest efficiently.

Orion Kerkering delivered a clean seventh inning. Brad Keller matched him in the eighth. Then came Jhoan Durán, looking for redemption after Friday night’s rough outing.

Durán immediately allowed a leadoff double in the ninth, briefly bringing some tension back into the ballpark. But after winning a lengthy battle against José Ramírez that ended with a fly ball to left, the closer quickly put the game away for his ninth save of the season.

And just like that, the Phillies were back to .500 again at 26-26.

That alone does not mean much in late May. But the larger picture around this team continues to evolve under interim manager Don Mattingly. Since Mattingly replaced Rob Thomson, the Phillies are 17-7. The rotation has stabilized. Cristopher Sánchez has emerged into another frontline force. Wheeler looks dominant again. And slowly, the Phillies are beginning to resemble a team capable of climbing out of the hole that buried them earlier this season.

For one rain-soaked night, though, this belonged almost entirely to Wheeler.

Vintage Wheels, as Harper called him afterward.

The Phillies have seen that version of Zack Wheeler before.

The encouraging part is how quickly it has returned.

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