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Zack Wheeler turned down MLB’s offer to be added to the All-Star Game: ‘I’m not going to be disrespected’

Wheeler said earlier this week he would be willing to throw in the midsummer classic. Since the league didn’t approach him until Friday, Wheeler said he felt like their “fifth option."

Zack Wheeler says he felt like a "fifth option" when the league approached him about being an All-Star.
Zack Wheeler says he felt like a "fifth option" when the league approached him about being an All-Star.Read moreElizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer

DETROIT — Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler declined to be added to the National League All-Star team when approached by MLB on Friday, he said.

“Because they disrespected me, so I’m not going to participate in it,” Wheeler said. “I’m not going to be disrespected.”

Dodgers left-hander Justin Wrobleski was named a replacement instead on Saturday for Reds pitcher Chase Burns. Wrobleski has a 2.69 ERA and 1.01 WHIP over 100 ⅓ innings pitched this year.

» READ MORE: Zack Wheeler and Philly fans are bothered by his All-Star snub: ‘People will regret not picking him’

Despite a 2.28 ERA in his first 14 starts, Wheeler was not named to the initial roster through the player vote. Nor was he included in the first round of player replacements for pitchers who opted out of appearing in the game. Phillies lefty Jesús Luzardo was added to the NL team on Tuesday and is set to make his first career All-Star appearance.

Wheeler was almost certainly initially excluded because of the Phillies’ rotation schedule, which has him starting Sunday’s series finale in Detroit. Typically, pitchers who start the final game before the All-Star break are unable to appear in the All-Star Game.

However, following his start Tuesday in Cincinnati, Wheeler said he would be willing to throw an inning anyway. After striking out 14 Reds over seven innings, Wheeler said the snub had been on his mind.

“I feel like that’s kind of a reminder,” Wheeler said, “for whoever needs to be reminded.”

But because the league didn’t approach him until three days later, Wheeler said he felt like their “fifth option,” which he found disrespectful. If the league had invited him earlier in the week, his answer would have been different.

Making the All-Star team is one of three goals Wheeler sets for himself every year, along with winning a Cy Young Award and a World Series. He has three career All-Star selections, but has only appeared in the game in 2021. He did not pitch in the game in 2024 or 2025.

» READ MORE: Garrett Stubbs got T-shirts made of Zack Wheeler’s quote after his All-Star snub: ‘He should be in there’

“There’s other years where they ask me to be in it, and I said no, but I was maybe struggling through some stuff or whatever it may be, but this time it’s pure disrespect,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler believes that his numbers speak for themselves, and doesn’t think that his return from thoracic outlet decompression surgery less than a year ago should have factored into the league’s decision. The right-hander had a rib removed last September to treat his venous thoracic outlet syndrome.

It’s a procedure that has ended other pitchers’ careers, but Wheeler has not missed a step.

“I don’t need somebody saying, ”Oh, he’s had major surgery. Look at him now.’ No, I don’t need that. That was my plan to come back as who I was, or even better,” Wheeler said.

Although he felt disrespected by the league, his teammates made sure that he knew they valued him. Following Wheeler’s postgame interview Tuesday, catcher Garrett Stubbs had T-shirts made with Wheeler’s quote on them, which he distributed to everyone. The shirts also featured a rooster with Wheeler’s No. 45, a nod to his walk-out song, “Rooster” by Alice in Chains.

“He deserves being an All-Star. And it’s [B.S.] that he’s not,” Stubbs told the Inquirer on Friday.

While Wheeler didn’t wear the shirt himself, many of his teammates did, along with Phillies staff and coaches. Even interim manager Don Mattingly wore one during his media availability on Friday.

“I really just don’t say much. So when I do, I guess they think it’s funny and stuff,” Wheeler said. “So they just made a funny T-shirt and supported me. So I appreciate it.”

Adding to Wheeler’s overall frustration was the fact that this snub could affect him post-career. Along with other factors, All-Star selections are sometimes taken into account by some Hall of Fame voters evaluating a player post-career.

“People who vote on stuff after your career might look at that too,” Wheeler said. “And for somebody to kind of take that away from me, it doesn’t sit well with me. So that’s why I’m kind of saying what I’m saying.”

He added that he doesn’t want to hate on the All-Star weekend festivities and hopes his six teammates attending the festivities in Philadelphia — Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Brandon Marsh, Cristopher Sánchez, Jhoan Duran, and Luzardo — enjoy it.

“I don’t want to sit here and sound like I’m just hating on the whole thing. It’s fun. It’s a privilege,” Wheeler said. “There’s something to it, especially after your career, you have those accolades next to your name. Two-time All-Star, or seven-time All-Star. Obviously, the seven sounds a lot better.

“But at the same time, it was kind of just personal. I just don’t want to be disrespected as a person or at my job. I take it very seriously, and it’s just me as a person, too. Like I said before, maybe I didn’t earn it from the get-go, but maybe the second choice. Once I feel like they kind of messed that up, I’m out.”

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