With Chris Sale in visitor’s dugout, Zack Wheeler turns in Cy Young-caliber performance for Phillies
Final Score: Phillies 3, Braves 0
The NL Cy Young favorite was at Citizens Bank Park Saturday sitting in the visitors dugout in the form of Atlanta Braves lefty Chris Sale. But he got a front-row seat to a dominant outing from Philadelphia Phillies righty Zack Wheeler that served as a reminder that the race for the top pitching honor in the senior circuit is still unfolding.
In a 3-0 Phillies win, Wheeler had himself quite the night, limiting the Braves to just four hits over seven shutout innings, while striking out seven.
“Yeah, I hope so,” Wheeler said when asked if he thinks he’s put himself in the Cy Young conversation.
“It’s just one of the things you come into the season and that’s one of your personal goals is to win that,” Wheeler continued. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with personal goals because if you set those and you do well and you accomplish them or you come even close to it, you’re helping the team a lot. That’s all I try to do every year is just try to be the best I possibly can and I know that will help the team.”
The outing helped assure that the Phillies will at least split a crucial four-game series with the Braves, and will finish their final series with the division rivals up by no less than five games in the NL East race.
As for the Cy Young race, Wheeler did himself a favor Saturday, but still has some work to do to usurp Sale.
Chris Sale 2024 Stats: 15-3, 2.58 ERA, 2.07 FIP, 197 strikeouts, 1.02 WHIP, 15 quality starts and 5.7 WAR over 153 2/3 innings pitched
Zack Wheeler 2024 Stats: 13-6, 2.63 ERA, 3.26 FIP, 183 strikeouts, 0.98 WHIP, 22 quality starts and 4.4 WAR over 167 2/3 innings pitched
Wheeler’s start Saturday put him in position to make a late run at the award, which has narrowly eluded his grasp across four previous seasons with the Phillies.
More importantly for the Phillies, they will enter September in the driver’s seat in the division, hoping to snap a six-year streak for the Braves and win the NL East for the first time since 2011.
Highlights
- After Wheeler escaped a jam with runners on the corners to get out of the top of the third, Edmundo Sosa hit a 450-foot home run off of Max Fried to lead off the home half of the inning:
- Matt Olson crushed a ball off Wheeler in the top of the sixth inning that looked destined for the shrubs in center field off the bat. Instead, it died at the wall, where Johan Rojas made a catch that probably was much more difficult than he made it look. If Rojas didn’t catch this, it likely would have been a game-tying home run:
- Trea Turner then led off the bottom of the sixth with a solo home run, just his second long ball in the month of August:
- Michael Harris II countered with one of the best catches in Citizens Bank Park history in the bottom of the seventh, when he robbed Austin Hays of a home run:
- However, Sosa would add onto the lead later in the inning with a double into the right-center field gap that plated Weston Wilson.
Ticket IQ Next Game
- Sunday, Sept. 1 vs. Braves
- 7:10 p.m. ET
- TV: ESPN
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
- Spanish Radio: WTTM 1680
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View Comments
Cy Young's gonna be close this year. Sale leads in ERA (2.58), strikeouts (197), WAR (5.7), and FIP (2.07). Meanwhile, Wheeler leads in WHIP (0.98), innings pitched, (167 2/3) and quality starts (22). Not looking at wins or losses because that is entirely dependent on the team winning games, not the pitcher throwing the ball well (Sale could give up one run in 8 innings, if the Braves lose 1-0 he would get the loss). Right now, I'd say it would go to Wheeler just because of more innings pitched and the quality starts. Sure Sale has a lower ERA but he allows like, 5 runs one game, then 2 the next, then 6 the next game, then 3 the next, and so on. Basically what I'm trying to say is Sale is a pitching Triple Crown winner every other start, but the ones in between he's a good 2-3 starter. Anyway, close race, gonna be fun to watch through the end of the year