Phillies’ Zack Wheeler takes the next step in his rehab from surgery

CLEARWATER, Fla. — Zack Wheeler toed the rubber on a mound Thursday for the first time in more than six months.

The 21 pitches — all four-seam fastballs and sinkers — Wheeler threw at the Phillies’ Carpenter Complex marked the next major step in his journey back from Sept. 23 thoracic outlet decompression surgery. A blood clot was discovered near the right-hander’s shoulder in August.

Wheeler had been recovering well from his long toss sessions, which had extended as far as 120 feet. The Phillies identified Thursday as a potential date for his first bullpen session and decided to go for it when he came in that morning feeling good.

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“The velo was good, the ball flight was good,” said manager Rob Thomson, who declined to share the radar gun readings. “Hit the glove. He was good.

“… He thought it was great. He felt great. We’ll check him [Friday] and find out how he’s feeling, and get a plan going for moving forward.”

Could Wheeler be ready to pitch in major league games in six weeks?

“Possibly,” Thomson said. “It’s new stuff, and it’s different than a lot of other injuries. We really can’t pin it down to a week or a day.”

Typically when players are built up in the spring, the schedule is two days off between bullpen sessions. Thomson hopes that Wheeler will be able to adhere to that, but because of the uniqueness of the injury and recovery process, that isn’t certain.

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Thomson added that he wasn’t surprised at Wheeler’s progress so far.

“He’s worked awfully hard, and that’s the key to it,” he said. “He’s worked harder than he’s ever worked in the offseason. So it’s a really good sign. He’s strong. Shoulder’s stronger than it ever has been. So really feel good about it.”