Zack Wheeler ‘going in the right direction’ after facing hitters again. Could a minor-league spring-training game be next?
The Phillies' ace simulated two innings against Brandon Marsh, Edmundo Sosa, and Justin Crawford on Wednesday. He is nearly six months clear of the removal of a rib that was compressing a vein.
CLEARWATER, Fla. — As Zack Wheeler threw warmup pitches before facing hitters in live batting practice Wednesday, a familiar Alice In Chains song played in the empty stadium.
“Yeeeeah, here comes the rooster ... ”
Coming soon to a spring-training game?
“I don’t know,” the Phillies’ ace said with what amounted to a vocal shrug. “You’re asking the wrong person. Maybe. You have to ask the higher-ups.”
First, an update: Four days after facing hitters for the first time with a 20-pitch inning, Wheeler simulated two innings against Brandon Marsh, Edmundo Sosa, and Justin Crawford. He threw two types of fastballs, sweepers, splitters, and curveballs. He pitched from the windup and the stretch.
“I felt really good out of the windup,” Wheeler said. “Just a little tough out of the stretch today for whatever reason. In my bullpens, I’ve been a little wacky out of the stretch. But it felt better than that, so we’re going in the right direction.”
Next step: Rob Thomson said after the Phillies’ exhibition game against the Braves in North Port, Fla., that it was still undecided.
Wheeler, whose season ended last August with a blood clot near his shoulder that was caused by thoracic outlet syndrome, is nearly six months clear of the removal of a rib that was compressing a vein.
The Phillies have intentionally avoided outlining a timetable for Wheeler’s return. But if you’re looking for clues, consider this: Healthy pitchers tend to throw live batting practice in late February.
“I feel like I am right now where I probably would be in the same situation in a [normal] build-up phase,” Wheeler said. “I feel like I should be going into live BPs. That’s how I normally would feel in years past.”
In that case, he’s about three weeks behind schedule, and way ahead of the typical eight-month recovery for most pitchers with thoracic outlet syndrome.
Wheeler guessed that his fastball was “about the same as last time,” when he registered 92-93 mph, down from his pre-surgery average velocity (95.9 mph) but common for live batting practice.
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There are other boxes to check. Wheeler said he has focused on his most important pitches, notably his two-seam and four-seam fastballs. He will begin incorporating sliders and cutters soon.
Based on his recent throwing schedule, Wheeler will face hitters at least once more before the Phillies break camp on Monday. It’s possible that it could come in a minor-league game on a back field of the complex, which he said would represent another step up from the live BP setting.
“Yeah, I mean, there’s a difference,” he said. “You’ve got to deal with the pitch clock. You’ve got to deal with just like the game rhythm. Guys coming up to the plate, guys don’t know you as well, so you’ve got to mix it up maybe a little bit more.
“And then, if we were to face minor-league guys, they’re always super, super aggressive, so that’s just a whole different game. I’d probably get whacked. We always do. It’s never fun. Anyway, yeah, it is a little different.”