Phillies' Starter Has Helped Spark Recent Success for Franchise

Jul 25, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; A detailed view of a Hall of Fame patch on a Philadelphia Phillies hat resting in the dugout during the second inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Phillies' Starter Has Helped Spark Recent Success for Franchise

Originally posted on Philadelphia Phillies on SI
By Nick Ziegler | Last updated May 13, 2026 10:00 AM ET

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As the Philadelphia Phillies continue to try to claw their way back to the .500 mark and back into contention, the team has received a nice spark thanks to the return of a star.

Following a (9-19) start to the season, it felt like the sky was falling in Philadelphia. This was a team that was coming into the year with high expectations, but got off to a terrible start. That poor beginning to the year resulted in Rob Thomson being fired, and that has proven to be the right decision.

Since then, the team has been performing much better and has a (11-3) record following their win against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday. With the recent success, they have received much better play from a majority of the team. While the firing of Thomson might have sparked the recent run, it also correlates with Zack Wheeler coming off the injured list.

After seeing his year end early in 2025 due to blood clots, it was undoubtedly a scary time for Wheeler, and it was hard to predict what he would be when he returned. However, after another strong outing in his fourth start of the campaign against the Red Sox, it is clear that Wheeler is still a Cy Young-caliber pitcher.

Wheeler Hasn’t Missed a Beat

Since returning from the injured list at the end of April against the Atlanta Braves, Wheeler has pitched really well so far. In his first three starts, he totaled 17.1 innings pitched and allowed six runs.

While his individual performance has been strong, what has been key is that the Phillies have won every game that he has started. For a team that has needed to stack wins, getting Wheeler back helped make that a reality.

Against Boston, he had arguably his best start of the season to date. He totaled 7.1 innings, allowing just one run on six hits, and didn’t walk a batter. The Red Sox started to get to him a bit later on in the game, but the results overall were really strong.

Following the good outing, his ERA has moved down to 2.59, and he has seemingly not missed a bit. With Wheeler returning, Philadelphia now has their elite one-two combination along with Cristopher Sanchez. This duo can be one of the best in the league, and a healthy Wheeler has quickly helped the team turn things around.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia Phillies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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