Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler is one of the best in the game, but he was not on his game for Sunday’s start against the Miami Marlins, giving up a season-high six runs in four innings. Wheeler explained the Marlins’ approach and why he did not have success in the game.
“They seemed to be more aggressive today,” Zack Wheeler said, via The Associated Press. “I didn’t command the ball like I wanted to and they got me. I felt great. I wasn’t out of whack.”
It is good for the Phillies that Wheeler said he felt good physically. He clearly believes it was a combination of the Marlins’ approach and him not locating pitches properly.
Nick Castellanos got the Phillies off to a good start in the first inning with a three-run home run to go up 3-0. Knowing that Wheeler was taking the mound, it felt like a win was likely for the Phillies. It started to go wrong in the second inning, when Wheeler gave up an RBI double to Jesus Sanchez. Then in the third inning, Josh Bell hit a three-run home run to give Miami a 4-3 lead. In the fourth, the Marlins scored three more with a Christian Bethancourt sacrifice bunt and a two-run triple by Jazz Chisholm Jr.
The Phillies went on to tie the game in the sixth inning, when Edmundo Sosa hit a two-run triple and Brandon Marsh hit a sac fly to bring him home. Eventually, the Marlins went on to win the game 7-6 in 10 innings after Emmanuel Rivera hit a walk-off single. While it was a disappointing loss, the silver lining is that the Phillies won the first two games of the series, and still won two out of three.
Zack Wheeler’s season
After Sunday’s start, Wheeler still has good numbers on the year, with a 2.53 ERA in nine starts and 65 strikeouts to his name, according to MLB.com.
Wheeler’s previous season-high in runs given up was on April 14 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, when he gave up five runs with four of them earned in five innings. Every other start this season, Wheeler has given up three runs or less. In the four previous starts combined coming into Sunday’s game against the Marlins, Wheeler gave up just one run. It would be a surprise if Wheeler did not rebound from a rough start against the Marlins.
Luckily for the Phillies, they are still ahead of the Atlanta Braves for first place in the National League East, and have the most wins in MLB with 28.
Up next for the Phillies are four games against the New York Mets, with the first two being on the road and last two being at home.
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