When Zack Wheeler managed to put it all together — to really, truly put it all together — down the stretch last season, the result was the type of dominance long expected from the former first-round pick. At his best, Wheeler can throw five electric pitches, from a four-seam fastball that hits triple digits to a hammer curve and diving splitter.
Tuesday, Wheeler again put it all together — and more. On the mound, Wheeler struck out 11 over seven shutout innings in what was easily his best start of the season. At the plate, he homered, doubled and drove home three runs in the Mets’ 9-0 rout of the Phillies at Citi Field.
The home run left Wheeler’s bat at 101.4 mph, per Statcast, making the right-hander the first pitcher this season to throw a pitch 100-plus mph and hit a ball 100-plus mph. Adding to the confluence of 100s, the feat came in Wheeler’s 100th career start. The Mets became the first National League club since at least 1908 to receive homers from three pitchers (Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Wheeler) in their first 25 games.
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