Zack Wheeler, coming off season-ending thoracic outlet decompression surgery last September, has rebounded in a way few expected. After a shaky start that left some doubts in April, he has surged to a 6-1 record and a 2.01 ERA through 10 starts, with opponents
PHILADELPHIA — The last time Zack Wheeler left the mound for good, the Phillies framed it as a temporary detour. Last September. he underwent season-ending thoracic outlet decompression surgery. and Dave Dombrowski—then the president of baseball operations—said the organization fully expected the perennial Cy Young contender to return as “the Zack Wheeler of old” in 2026.
It’s hard to find a clean way to describe what has followed without sounding exaggerated. Wheeler missed less than a month to begin the season. returned to the mound. and hasn’t looked like he’s carrying the weight of the surgery—or the earlier concerns from his underwhelming rehab outings back in April.
Now, with his next start coming on Sunday night against the Mets, the question isn’t simply whether Wheeler is back. It’s whether he might be in a new gear.
Through 10 starts, the right-hander is 6-1 with a 2.01 ERA. That mark is by far the best ERA through 10 starts in any season of his 12-year career. It’s also more than a half-run better than his second-best start to a season—2.52 in 2021 and again in 2024.
The most eye-catching part is Wheeler’s own assessment. Even with the numbers this strong, he doesn’t think he’s reached his peak.
“Just kind of a few inconsistent starts in a row,” Wheeler said. “Just command-wise, just not as sharp as what I’m used to.”
This month, his command hasn’t been perfect. Wheeler has issued three walks in two of his three starts this month. Still, his overall walk rate remains below his career average, and it’s slightly below even the incredible 2024 season when he finished as the NL Cy Young runner-up.
When you watch how he’s getting through games, the picture looks less fragile than the walk totals might suggest. Wheeler has completed at least six innings in each of his past nine outings, following a season debut where he went five. That decision wasn’t an accident—it was by design.
Hitters haven’t been finding much room. Opposing batters are slashing .174/.233/.321 against Wheeler, for a .554 OPS. Each of those numbers would stand as a single-season best for the 36-year-old right-hander.
The Phillies haven’t just benefited from Wheeler’s steadiness—they’ve leaned on it. They are 8-2 in games started by him.
“As long as I keep getting decent results, we’re on a good road,” Wheeler said. “But I just need to sharpen up a little bit.”
In the clubhouse calculus, it’s a familiar storyline after major surgery: can the pitcher return, can he stay healthy, can he replicate what made him special. In Wheeler’s case, the initial answers have been brutal in their clarity. The Phillies insisted they expected “the Zack Wheeler of old.”
Whether Sunday night against the Mets proves it’s only that—or something closer to the next version—he’s already built a run that makes the rest of the season feel like it starts with him.
Zack Wheeler Phillies Mets thoracic outlet decompression surgery Cy Young 2026 season pitching stats Dave Dombrowski