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Zack Wheeler Officially Done for Rest of Phillies Season

Originally posted on Philadelphia Phillies on SI
By Brad Wakai | Last updated Aug 23, 2025 3:30 PM ET

It felt like this news was coming for a while, but the Philadelphia Phillies will be without their superstar ace Zack Wheeler for the rest of the way.

First reported by Matt Gelb of The Athletic, the insider revealed that Wheeler will undergo surgery for venous thoracic outlet syndrome. That is something that occurs when the subclavian vein in the arm is compressed. The timeline for recovery is roughly 6-8 months.

This is not something uncommon for pitchers since VTOS takes place from repetitive overhead arm movements, but in the case of Wheeler, this resulted in a blood clot that needed to be taken care of for his personal safety.

The Phillies further expanded upon what Wheeler is dealing with and why he opted to undergo this operation following a previous surgery to initially remove the blood clot.

Phillies medical update on Zack Wheeler pic.twitter.com/JnnEAz4cMZ
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 23, 2025

In this moment, the only thing that matters is ensuring Wheeler makes a full recovery, with baseball being secondary to personal health for him and his family. Making the decision to undergo this procedure will help with that.

As far as Wheeler's pitching future goes, that is a bit murky because there have been numerous pitchers in the past who have undergone a procedure to cure their venous thoracic outlet syndrome and haven't come back as the same type of player.

From Matt Harvey to Stephen Strasburg to Chris Archer, there have been plenty of examples of how this operation can affect the performance of a pitcher going forward. And at 35 years old, there's no guarantee Wheeler will come back from this and still be one of the MLB's best.

How This Impacts Wheeler Going Forward

However, there is a silver lining for Wheeler; Merrill Kelly had this procedure done in September of 2020 and has been an above-average starting pitcher in every season after that except for one, meaning there is recent history that suggests Wheeler could find success again.

Kelly was a few years younger than Wheeler currently is when he underwent his surgery, so that is something to factor in here. But with modern medicine constantly improving, there is hope that Wheeler can follow down the same path as Kelly.

Again, baseball is secondary to making sure everything is OK with the Phillies ace going forward. Treating the blood clot initially was the first step in doing that. Now, with the secondary procedure set to take place, Wheeler will attempt to come back and dominate on the mound again for the remainder of his career.