CLEARWATER, Fla. — The story of this year’s opening of Phillies camp is familiarity.
The team is essentially “running it back” one more time with its main cast of characters. Aaron Nola was signed to a seven-year, $172 million deal before Thanksgiving and outside of a few depth acquisitions in the rotation that may or may not have an impact this year, not much else has gone on. Nola, J.T. Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber, Nick Castellanos and Bryce Harper are all under contract for at least two more years.
The notable exclusion here is their ace pitcher Zack Wheeler. He is set to become a free agent after 2024 and luckily for the Phillies, he has interest in signing a new deal within the next few weeks.
He confirmed as much with reporters in the Phillies clubhouse on Wednesday afternoon in Clearwater. Negotiations have started, Wheeler said. He hopes to get a deal done soon. He even suggested that he’s not completely opposed to keeping talks open during the regular season if the two sides can’t get a deal done by Opening Day.
“I love it here,” Wheeler said. “We’re happy here. It’s a good organization. We’re winning. All things are looking great and right, so I’d love to be here.”
It won’t come cheap. By not going to the market, Wheeler will almost certainly leave money on the table, but he’ll get a significant raise from his current $23.6 million annual salary next year no matter what.
He did not chase the highest dollar value during his first venture into free agency. The Chicago White Sox reportedly offered Wheeler more than $120 million when he was a free agent in the 2019-2020 offseason, but he took the Phillies’ $118 million offer to stay closer to his wife Dominque’s home in New Jersey.
He also thought the team would be a good fit for him and he was right. Wheeler praised the organization’s infrastructure and ownership’s willingness to spend money to keep players healthy.
“I’ve always liked the organization from the outside looking in,” Wheeler said. “I knew they had a good core here. Since the new front office took over, they’ve done a lot of stuff. They’ve changed a lot of stuff. How they go about things in the weight room, training room. The staff has been incredible. Anything we want, we can basically get because John [Middleton] is not afraid to spend money and help us out off the field. I think that’s the big key for us, just staying on the field, that type of stuff. Not every organization does that, so seeing that is definitely reassuring. It’s making upgrades and keeping up with the times. That type of stuff, it definitely helps us out as a team.”
It’s the kind of infrastructure the Phillies have to have in place if they plan on competing with much of their payroll space devoted to multiple stars in their 30s making at least $20 million a year. Wheeler’s unprompted praise of the team’s plan to do so is yet another sign that leads towards a deal eventually getting done.
But it will all come down to dollars. His wish is to be paid fairly.
“I do want what I feel like I earned, I would say,” Wheeler said. “But at the same time, you don’t always get that. It’s about everybody being happy at the same time. You don’t want to be miserable and being paid a lot. Just being happy and getting what you earn.”
What’s fair remains to be seen. Wheeler’s agent will keep a close eye on the free agent starting pitching market and whether or not Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery get the deals they are seeking. If Snell, for instance, secures a contract worth well over $200 million, Wheeler has a case for matching or exceeding his deal. Snell, 31, has the age advantage over Wheeler, 33, but both are top tier starting pitchers. Wheeler arguably has less warts than Snell, who doesn’t carry the same reputation as a workhorse.
Wheeler is coming off a fourth straight stellar season with the Phillies. 2023 was the first year of Wheeler’s tenure in Philadelphia where his ERA was above three, but he stayed healthy throughout the regular season, placed sixth in Cy Young Award voting and finished with four quality starts in the postseason. His last appearance came in Game 7 of the NLCS, where he recorded five outs in an effort to give his team a chance to stave off a heartbreaking collapse.
The Phillies did not win it all with Wheeler and Co. in 2023, but they’re hoping to give it at least one more shot with one of the best starting pitchers in baseball on the roster.
And if the Phillies want another, they are going to have to pay up.
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