Phillies news and rumors 6/22: Zack Wheeler speaks on his free agency, Phillies announce weekend rotation

Zack Wheeler is in his fourth season with the Phillies. (Cheryl Pursell/Phillies Nation)

The Phillies have done quite well in free agency since the end of the rebuild. While Bryce Harper will likely go down as the most impactful Phillies signing over the last 40 years, Zack Wheeler isn’t too far behind him on the list.

One of the biggest steals in free agency over the last few years, Wheeler signed a five-year, $118 million deal and has established himself as one of the best pitchers in the sport. He’s 36-23 with a 2.93 ERA in 126 career starts with the Phillies.

The Chicago White Sox reportedly offered Wheeler more than $120 million. The Cincinnati Reds and Texas Rangers were also in it, but Wheeler preferred to remain on the east coast.

The Phillies, who badly needed another top tier pitcher to pair with Aaron Nola at the top of the rotation, apparently came in very late with a large enough offer to keep Wheeler away from the midwest.

Wheeler joined Foul Territory with Scott Braun, A.J. Pierzynski and Erik Kratz on Wednesday to discuss the timing of the Phillies’ offer.

The Phillies actually came in really late. We were already looking at houses in a few different places. I think it was Cincinnati and Chicago. We were already looking at houses there and the Phillies came in late. I wanted to be on the east coast at the end of the day, just closer to my wife’s family for help because I knew we were about to start a family. And I still get to go home to Atlanta three times a year, so I think that was the biggest thing for me. If the money was close in those situations, I was going to stay on the east coast. It was close enough for me to make that decision for me to come to Philly. Like I said, I haven’t second guessed it one time, signing here. At the end of the day, I’m happy. There is a lot of stuff that goes into it. Love Chicago. Love going there all the time. Beautiful city. Beautiful ballpark there with the White Sox. I enjoy pitching there when we go. It’s all about family and being comfortable with where you’re going to be playing for the next five years.

Zack Wheeler on his free agency (via Foul Territory)

Phillies rotation

Here are the pitching matchups for the remainder of the homestand:

Thursday, June 22 vs. Atlanta — RHP Aaron Nola vs. RHP Bryce Elder
Friday, June 23 vs. New York — RHP Taijuan Walker vs. RHP Kodai Senga
Saturday, June 24 vs. New York — LHP Cristopher Sánchez vs. RHP Carlos Carrasco
Sunday, June 25 vs. New York — RHP Zack Wheeler vs. RHP Max Scherzer

The Braves moved rookie AJ Smith-Shawver’s next start to Friday in Cincinnati. He was originally scheduled to face Nola on Wednesday night.

The Phillies have decided to use the extra days to give their starters rest as opposed to rolling with a four-man rotation. Sunday should be a fun one with Wheeler going up against Max Scherzer.

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