Categories: 2022 Postgame Recaps

Dominant Wheeler leads Phillies to shutout victory over Padres

Zack Wheeler threw seven shutout innings in Wednesday’s game. (Cheryl Pursell)

Final Score: Phillies 3, Padres 0

It’s safe to say that Zack Wheeler is officially back to ace form. He threw seven shutout innings, striking out nine hitters in a 3-0 Phillies victory against the Padres. Wednesday marked the second time this season the Phillies have shut out an opponent, which is a great way to respond after being held scoreless in the series opener.

The Phillies took advantage of Blake Snell’s early command troubles and took a 1-0 lead in the first. J.T. Realmuto ended an 0-for-13 with an RBI single up the middle to score Rhys Hoskins.

Speaking of Hoskins, he doubled the Phillies’ lead with a solo home run to left field. He got a first-pitch fastball down the heart of the plate and did not miss.

Odúbel Herrera notched his first extra-base hit against a lefty this season. Kyle Schwarber scored all the way from first to give the Phillies a 3-0 lead in the fourth.

José Alvarado and Corey Knebel both threw 1-2-3 innings in the eighth and ninth inning respectively. Knebel in particular needed only four pitches to get through the top of the San Diego order.

The Phillies will go for their third series win at home on Thursday afternoon. Kyle Gibson will oppose Yu Darvish in the series finale.

Shibe Vintage Sports Starting Pitching Performance

Blake Snell: 3 1/3 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 SO, 1 HR, 84 pitches

Wednesday was the former American League Cy Young Award-winner’s first start of the year as he dealt with a left adductor strain for the first six weeks of the season. He threw 34 mostly high-stress pitches in the first, which ultimately led to a third-inning exit after 84 pitches.

Zack Wheeler: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 9 SO, 97 pitches

When Wheeler was struggling early on in the season, one of the bigger concerns was the lack of whiffs on his fastball. On Wednesday, Padres hitters just couldn’t catch up to the pitch, which maxed out at 97.8 mph. The Phillies ace induced a combined 14 whiffs on his fastball and sinker, which is a clear sign that Wheeler’s stuff is high quality.

Phillies Nugget Of The Game

For the second time this season, Phillies starters have gone at least six innings in four consecutive games. Zach Eflin, Ranger Suárez, Wheeler and Aaron Nola all threw six innings in their respective outings from April 26-29.

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