Don Mattingly Addresses Zack Wheeler Struggles After Phillies Loss
Wheeler surrendered eight runs over four-plus innings, snapping the Phillies’ nine-game win streak while allowing four home runs and walking five batters.
Command Issues and the First-Inning Deficit
The night unravelled quickly for the right-hander in Seattle. After Luis Arraez supplied a first-inning single to put the Phillies on the board, Wheeler absorbed a five-run ambush from the game’s first six hitters. “Just uncharacteristic,” Mattingly stated on the broadcast. “I just was talking to Caleb (Cotham), I haven’t been around him a whole lot, command was the biggest thing we see.”
Wheeler’s raw velocity and pitch movement remained close to his seasonal benchmarks. Fastball metrics hovered just under 95 mph, matching his 95.2 mph season average. Yet, the Mariners capitalized on missed spots. Four of the nine hits yielded by Wheeler left the ballpark, tying a career-worst home run total for a single outing. Cal Raleigh powered the Seattle offense with a three-homer performance, anchoring a 9-2 final score.
Second-Half Trends and Postseason Stakes
The rough outing underscored a broader second-half slide for the veteran arm. Wheeler carries a 5.60 ERA in the second half of the 2026 campaign. Over his last six starts, his overall ERA climbed from 2.16 to 3.40. While his strikeout rate remains steady at 26.1 percent, control problems have mounted. His walk rate has spiked to 13.4 percent since July 27, yielding 16 runs across 20.1 innings over that stretch.
Despite the statistical dip, Mattingly expressed confidence in the right-hander’s ability to recalibrate. “I’m not concerned that he’s not going to get where he needs to get to,” Mattingly said. “Obviously anytime guys struggle…you’re concerned about it. You keep working to get better. But you’re not like ‘Oh, this guy’s lost it; he’s never going to be good again.’ So it’s like the kind of thing when I say I don’t worry about it, I don’t worry about that.”
The Decision in the Fifth Inning
Mattingly opted to send Wheeler back out for the fifth frame, a decision that backfired immediately. Back-to-back home runs from Raleigh and Cole Young cemented the deficit and triggered Wheeler’s removal in favor of reliever Alex McFarlane. “He wanted to go back out. I wanted him to go back out,” Mattingly explained. “We were going to keep it short, we weren’t going to let him go far. At that point we’re down, what is it, 6-2 and we’re in the fifth. So really needed that inning but didn’t get there.”
With the regular season entering its final stretch, regaining Wheeler’s peak form remains central to Philadelphia’s postseason outlook. As the coaching staff implements adjustments with pitching coach Caleb Cotham, stabilizing the rotation’s anchor will dictate the club’s trajectory through October.