Phillies' Zack Wheeler Development May Have Changed Everything

It was hard to figure out exactly what was wrong with Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler, an ace-caliber starter who had lived off of tremendous control ever since arriving in Philadelphia. But recently, something was off.

Wheeler began walking batters left and right, and his command issues resulted in him getting routinely shelled between late July and the latter portions of August.

The Phillies' World Series hopes largely hinge on their starting rotation, which consists of Cristopher Sanchez, Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo. So if one of those arms isn't up to snuff, Philadelphia's championship aspirations could swirl down the drain.

But on Sunday, Wheeler may have rediscovered his mojo, and all it took was a small tweak.

The 36-year-old surrendered just one run on four hits over six innings, registering six strikeouts in a win over the Los Angeles Angels. Yes, he still issued three walks (and hit Mike Trout), but Wheeler looked far more comfortable throughout the outing as a whole.

Apparently, the right-hander's glove arm had become a big problem. It was held two inches lower than usual as Wheeler was tagged for eight runs — including four homers — against the Seattle Mariners in his previous game, and it had been trending downward all season.

“So what do we do?” Wheeler asked, via Matt Gelb of The Athletic. “Just bring the front arm up a little bit. Go from there.”

That tweak resulted in Wheeler's strongest performance in over five weeks, and it may have put him back on the right track with the playoffs just around the corner.

Wheeler doesn't believe he is entirely out of the woods yet, and considering that his control was clearly not fully back against the Angels, that's understandable.

But there is no doubt that this was a major positive step for the three-time All-Star, who was beginning to look like he fell off a cliff.

Wheeler — who missed the early portions of 2026 while recovering from thoracic outlet syndrome — insisted he was healthy all along and didn't feel fatigued, which was what made his struggles all the more confounding.

But perhaps the righty has now fixed his biggest problem. We'll see if he can continue dealing in his next start.