Last August, Zack Wheeler’s season ended without warning.
One day, he was leading a Phillies rotation and building another National League Cy Young Award case. The next, doctors discovered a blood clot near his right shoulder, shifting every concern away from baseball. Wheeler underwent a procedure to remove the clot and later had a rib removed during thoracic outlet decompression surgery. His season was over, and the timetable for his return was uncertain.
Less than a year later, Wheeler is not merely back.
He is pitching as if the interruption never happened.
Wheeler enters Tuesday night’s start against the Los Angeles Dodgers with a 10-1 record, a 2.13 ERA and 108 strikeouts over 93 innings. Opponents are batting .185 against him, and his 4.7 Baseball-Reference WAR leads the Phillies’ pitching staff despite his season not beginning until April 25.
Those are not comeback-player numbers.
They are Cy Young numbers.
Wheeler has allowed two earned runs or fewer in 11 of his 15 starts. He has been especially dominant in July, producing 34 strikeouts over 17⅔ innings and reaching double figures in three consecutive outings. He tied his career high with 14 strikeouts against Cincinnati, then held Detroit scoreless for six innings while striking out 10 in his final start before the break.
That level of dominance would be remarkable under normal circumstances. It becomes more impressive when placed against everything Wheeler had to navigate during the previous eight months.
"To see what he does every time he takes the mound, especially now, it's something special," said teammate Kyle Schwarber. "The professionalism he brings and the work ethic, you can clearly see it pay it off in the results he gets."
The blood clot ended his 2025 season after 24 starts. At the time, he carried a 2.71 ERA and had recorded 195 strikeouts, the most in the National League when he was shut down. He had already established himself as one of baseball’s most dependable pitchers, but surgery involving the shoulder and upper chest presented questions that no previous statistics could answer.
Would the velocity return? Would his command remain intact? Could he handle a starter’s workload again?
Wheeler never publicly embraced those doubts.
“I’m going to be the same guy or even better,” he said while discussing the recovery earlier this season.
He has made that sound less like confidence and more like a forecast.
Wheeler’s first start back came in Atlanta on April 25, more than eight months after his previous major-league appearance. He allowed two runs over five innings as the Phillies snapped a 10-game losing streak. The outing was not one of his most dominant, but it carried a significance that could not be captured by the pitching line.
“You think about this moment,” Wheeler said afterward, describing the anxiety that came with finally returning to competition. “I’m glad it’s done.”
Since then, he has steadily removed the qualifiers from the conversation.
He is no longer pitching well for someone returning from surgery. He is simply pitching as well as almost anyone in the league.
Wheeler has finished second in the NL Cy Young voting twice as a Phillie, including in 2021 and 2024. His 2026 candidacy could eventually be complicated by the innings he missed in April, but his rate statistics, strikeout production and run prevention have placed him firmly in the race.
The season also carries a larger sense of urgency because Wheeler’s time in Philadelphia may be nearing its conclusion.
He is in the second season of a three-year, $126 million extension that runs through 2027. The contract pays him $42 million annually and contains no guaranteed season beyond next year.
Wheeler has indicated that he intends to retire when the deal expires. Asked by Matt Gelb of The Athletic whether walking away after 2027 remained his plan, Wheeler answered plainly: “That’s the plan.”
That possibility should shape how the Phillies view the next two seasons.
Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo give Philadelphia additional front-line strength, but Wheeler remains the pitcher around whom a postseason rotation can be built. His presence changes a short series. It gives the Phillies someone capable of matching another club’s ace and controlling a game when the offense is quiet.
The organization cannot assume it will always have that advantage.
Wheeler arrived in Philadelphia before the 2020 season as an accomplished pitcher with untapped potential. He became an ace, a postseason anchor and one of the most successful free-agent signings in franchise history.
Now he is producing one of his finest seasons after facing the most serious interruption of his career.
The blood clot raised questions about whether Wheeler could return.
His pitching has produced a different one:
Can he finally finish first in the Cy Young voting before his time with the Phillies—and perhaps his career—runs out?
The blood clot ended his 2025 season after 24 starts. At the time, he carried a 2.71 ERA and had recorded 195 strikeouts, the most in the National League when he was shut down. He had already established himself as one of baseball’s most dependable pitchers, but surgery involving the shoulder and upper chest presented questions that no previous statistics could answer.
Would the velocity return? Would his command remain intact? Could he handle a starter’s workload again?
Wheeler never publicly embraced those doubts.
“I’m going to be the same guy or even better,” he said while discussing the recovery earlier this season.
He has made that sound less like confidence and more like a forecast.
Wheeler’s first start back came in Atlanta on April 25, more than eight months after his previous major-league appearance. He allowed two runs over five innings as the Phillies snapped a 10-game losing streak. The outing was not one of his most dominant, but it carried a significance that could not be captured by the pitching line.
“You think about this moment,” Wheeler said afterward, describing the anxiety that came with finally returning to competition. “I’m glad it’s done.”
Since then, he has steadily removed the qualifiers from the conversation.
He is no longer pitching well for someone returning from surgery. He is simply pitching as well as almost anyone in the league.
Wheeler has finished second in the NL Cy Young voting twice as a Phillie, including in 2021 and 2024. His 2026 candidacy could eventually be complicated by the innings he missed in April, but his rate statistics, strikeout production and run prevention have placed him firmly in the race.
The season also carries a larger sense of urgency because Wheeler’s time in Philadelphia may be nearing its conclusion.
He is in the second season of a three-year, $126 million extension that runs through 2027. The contract pays him $42 million annually and contains no guaranteed season beyond next year.
Wheeler has indicated that he intends to retire when the deal expires. Asked by Matt Gelb of The Athletic whether walking away after 2027 remained his plan, Wheeler answered plainly: “That’s the plan.”
That possibility should shape how the Phillies view the next two seasons.
Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo give Philadelphia additional front-line strength, but Wheeler remains the pitcher around whom a postseason rotation can be built. His presence changes a short series. It gives the Phillies someone capable of matching another club’s ace and controlling a game when the offense is quiet.
The organization cannot assume it will always have that advantage.
Wheeler arrived in Philadelphia before the 2020 season as an accomplished pitcher with untapped potential. He became an ace, a postseason anchor and one of the most successful free-agent signings in franchise history.
Now he is producing one of his finest seasons after facing the most serious interruption of his career.
The blood clot raised questions about whether Wheeler could return.
His pitching has produced a different one:
Can he finally finish first in the Cy Young voting before his time with the Phillies—and perhaps his career—runs out?
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