No run support for Wheeler, Phillies cold offensively in final weekend originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
WASHINGTON — For the second time in four years, Zack Wheeler dominated in the month of September to cap off a Cy Young-caliber season.
And for the second time in four years, he’s locked in an extremely close race for the award all starters covet.
The Phillies could have made it easier on him with run support in his final start Saturday but they were stifled in seven of nine innings by Mackenzie Gore and the Nationals’ bullpen in a 6-3 loss.
The Phillies have been outscored 15-4 in back-to-back losses in D.C. after clinching a playoff bye on Wednesday at home. They are now locked into the 2-seed. The Dodgers will have home-field advantage in the NLCS if they advance. The Phils have it over the other five National League teams.
The Phillies’ NLDS opponent will be either the Brewers, Diamondbacks, Mets or Braves. They cannot face the Padres, who are locked into the 4-seed.
“We’d like home-field advantage but it’s not the end of the world,” Wheeler said. “We’ve still got home-field advantage for a little bit of it at least and we just gotta get there. We’ll worry about that later.”
Wheeler was his typical overpowering self, striking out 11 and cruising until rookie James Wood’s two-run, opposite-field homer in the bottom of the sixth. The pitch count was manageable and he and Rob Thomson had discussed a few days in advance letting Wheeler reach 200 innings as long as he wasn’t risking an injury to get there. If it’s not an stress-filled outing, Sunday should be the same with Aaron Nola, who is 5⅔ short.
Based on traditional statistics, workload, advanced metrics and his consistent excellence in the highest-pressure starts of his career, Wheeler has been the best pitcher in baseball since 2020, his first year with the Phillies. Yet there’s a possibility that the 1A of this era might not win a Cy Young because of circumstances outside his control. Pitchers like Wheeler lull you into thinking it’s easy, but staying healthy and doing what he’s done year after year since 2020 is nothing to take for granted.
Wheeler finished 16-8 with a 2.57 ERA, striking out 224 and allowing the lowest rate of hits in the league.
“I just told him it’s been a hell of a year,” Thomson said when asked about the conversation with Wheeler when he removed him at exactly 200 innings. “That’s Cy Young-worthy for me.”
In 2021, Wheeler (141 voting points) finished just behind…