The Phillies' ace didn't waste any time making a point. Wheeler came out of the gate blowing hitters away, and the strikeout counter started climbing before most fans had even settled into their seats.
Zack Wheeler's 3Ks in the 1st https://t.co/ujoVQ79EZI
That was just the appetizer. Wheeler kept stacking punchouts inning after inning, racking up 2 more in the 4th to reach 8 strikeouts through 4 innings, then adding 3 more in the 5th to push the total to 11. By the time he'd worked through 6 innings, he'd already piled up his 12th and 13th strikeouts, a total most starters would be thrilled to have for a whole outing.
Zack Wheeler's 12th and 13th Ks...thru 6 😲 https://t.co/tW7VILnW7E
He wasn't done. Wheeler tacked on a 14th strikeout to cap a season-high performance, the kind of start that instantly gets replayed on every baseball account with a pulse.
Zack Wheeler's 14th Strikeout. 👀 https://t.co/HucA863LAg
The timing made the whole thing sting a little extra. Wheeler's agent, B.B. Abbott, had already ripped the league over Wheeler's exclusion from this year's All-Star Game, calling the decision "tone deaf" given the Midsummer Classic is being played in Philadelphia this year, and arguing the league should've made it possible for Wheeler to be honored in his own ballpark. The 36-year-old has been dominant since returning from thoracic outlet surgery that ended his 2025 season early, coming into this start at 8-1 with a 2.36 ERA and 84 strikeouts across 13 outings. The Phillies already sent 5 players to the All-Star Game, and MLB's reasoning centered on a loaded NL pitching field plus the fact that Wheeler staying on his normal turn would've had him pitching the last day of the first half anyway, making him unavailable for the game itself.
STILL TRYING TO COMPREHEND THAT ZACK WHEELER ISN'T AN ALL-STAR THIS YEAR AND THIS ISN'T HELPING https://t.co/lajPFCzIyw
Rosters aren't fully locked at announcement, so there's still a door open for Wheeler to get added before the game in Philly. Nights like this one make that case louder than any agent statement could. If the league needed a reminder of what it's leaving off the roster, Wheeler just handed them a 14-strikeout highlight reel.