Zack Wheeler added another line to his growing postseason resume, dominating the Marlins over 6⅔ innings Tuesday night to help lead the Phillies to a 4-1 win in Game 1 of their wild-card series.
Wheeler's fastball was electric from the first pitch, sitting 98-99 early and averaging 97, more than one mph above his season average.
The first batter of the game, National League batting champ Luis Arraez, laced a ball to Cristian Pache in left field for a lineout. The next 19 batters failed to hit the ball out of the infield against Wheeler, who toyed with Miami, scattering just three hits until the seventh when a couple of seeing-eye singles pushed across the Marlins' lone run.
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Wheeler is a large reason why the Phillies have won the first game of all five playoff series over the last year. He started three of them, propelling the Phils to wins in Game 1 of the 2022 wild-card series in St. Louis, Game 1 of the NLCS vs. San Diego and Tuesday night over Miami.
He's put his team in position to advance to the NLDS with a win Wednesday night.
"To me, playing with him in 2020 for the first year, he's one of the first guys that I played with who can throw almost 100 — 98 to 100 consistently and command the baseball," Game 2 starter Aaron Nola said of Wheeler. "You see guys nowadays that throw really hard and they don't command it as well. He has four, five elite pitches that he can command.
"He's super calm and very chill, doesn't let anything get under his skin or get to him. You don't really know if things are going bad or going good just by the way he acts if you just look at him, which is what makes him so good, in my opinion. He can strike out 15 or he can give up five runs, it doesn't really matter to him after the fact. He knows what he has to do leading up to his next start, and he's got a quick memory so he forgets really quick."
Philadelphia Phillies
Wheeler has a 2.58 ERA and 0.73 WHIP in seven postseason starts. He has proven himself as a big-game pitcher the last two years after never appearing in the playoffs in seven seasons with the Mets. He's been a rock for the Phillies, missing only a handful of starts in his four years with an ERA barely over 3.00.
Jose Alvarado relieved Wheeler with two outs in the seventh inning and struck out Yuli Gurriel swinging with two aboard. Alvarado picked up the first two outs of the eighth inning and Jeff Hoffman finished it off. Imagine hearing in May that Hoffman would be the right-handed setup man tasked with ending the eighth inning of the Phillies' first playoff game. Craig Kimbrel shut the door in the ninth.
All nine starting Phillies position players had a hit, the last of which was a Bryce Harper single to begin the bottom of the eighth. He flew around the bases on a one-out Nick Castellanos double to extend the lead to three.
The Phillies scored once in the third inning and twice in the fourth. They had Marlins left-handed starter Jesus Luzardo on the ropes in three of his four innings and forced him to throw 90 pitches.
Alec Bohm, who drove in 96 runs and hit .347 with runners in scoring position this season, doubled in the first run with two outs in the bottom of the third, pointing to his dugout in celebration once the ball eluded third baseman Jake Burger.
Johan Rojas scored on Bohm's hit after singling to end a nine-pitch at-bat, his first in the postseason. The rookie center fielder has exceeded all expectations, hitting .302 with a .342 OBP in the regular season and showing a surprising comfort level at the plate to go with elite defense.
The Phillies opened the fourth with four straight hits by J.T. Realmuto, Castellanos, Bryson Stott and Pache. Castellanos' double put runners on second and third with no outs. Stott singled in Realmuto and Castellanos was thrown out at the plate, but Pache responded by singling in Stott.
Two innings later, Pache was removed for Brandon Marsh, who received a standing ovation. A portion of the Phillies' fanbase was confused why Pache, who slumped to end the season, got the starting nod. But manager Rob Thomson likes him against lefties (he hit .314) and also liked the at-bats Pache had earlier this season vs. Luzardo. He will likely be right back in the lineup in left field Wednesday night.
Marsh would start in Game 3 Thursday against right-hander Edward Cabrera but the Phillies are hoping that's nothing but a travel day to Atlanta. They can make that a reality Wednesday night in front of their deafening, difference-making fans.