Phillies hope rest will help Zack Wheeler bring his velocity back up

It’s no secret that Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler’s velocity was down a few ticks in Game 2 of the World Series against the Astros on Saturday in Houston. In Wheeler’s start against San Diego six days prior, he was maxing out at 99.5 mph. On Saturday, he topped out at 96.9 mph.

It was an uncharacteristically bumpy outing for the Phillies’ ace right-hander. Wheeler allowed six hits, five runs, four earned runs, and three walks over five innings, with one home run and three strikeouts in a 5-2 loss.

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There’s no doubt that the velocity dip is concerning, and it’s not coming at a good time for the Phillies. But manager Rob Thomson believes it could be helped with extra rest — which Wheeler will get thanks to Monday’s Game 3 rainout.

Thomson’s theory is that the velocity dip is a product of how Wheeler was built back up as he was coming back off the injured list. Wheeler was placed on the 15-day injured list on Aug. 25 with right forearm tendinitis. He was activated on Sept. 21, but he didn’t go on a rehab assignment before returning to the Phillies and made three starts limited by pitch counts in the regular season.

“So when he went on the IL, we brought him back, and not that we rushed him, but we ramped him up pretty quick, and I think that took its toll on him a little bit,” Thomson said on Tuesday. “And I think that’s why you’re seeing now the velocity go down a little bit. So I’m hoping the extra couple days will help him.”

Because this is Wheeler’s first career postseason appearance, it’s the longest big-league season of his career. He has thrown 183⅓ innings since his first start of the season April 12, and he led baseball in innings with 213⅓ in 2021.

Thomson said all of his pitchers are getting extra treatment, and he’s “confident” Wheeler will be ready to go for Game 6 on Saturday in Houston (if necessary). Wheeler will throw his next bullpen session on Thursday.

If Wheeler’s velocity doesn’t appear to be returning over the next few days, that will require a larger conversation with the trainers and strength and conditioning coaches.

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“I think there’s probably a lot of conversation with the trainers and strength and conditioning and trying to figure out, ‘OK, how do we adjust my program, what did I do differently,’ maybe,” Thomson said. “And I think there is a part of it where you have to think about, ‘OK, if I don’t have my velocity, what am I going to do? Am I going to lean more on my slider or my curveball or my change-up?’ Really focus on commanding the ball. You’ve got to figure it out if you don’t have your best velocity.”

Astros manager Dusty Baker said he will tentatively start Justin Verlander in Game 5 on Thursday in Philadelphia.

“Well, not for sure, but it’s in pencil, not in ink,” Baker said of whether he will start the future Hall of Fame right-hander.

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When asked whether Verlander would be able to pitch in Game 7 if he pitched in Game 4, Baker said he hasn’t “gotten that far.”

“I mean, we’ve thought about it, you know, with the days off and different things,” Baker said. “We’d rather not pitch him on short rest because we’ve still got to take care of Verlander. So we would rather pitch him on one more day’s rest versus one day less rest.”

The Phillies have Aaron Nola lined up to start Game 4, either Noah Syndergaard or Kyle Gibson to start in Game 5, Wheeler in Game 6, and Ranger Suárez in Game 7.