Phillies' Zack Wheeler dazzles in fourth outing amid injury recovery

Phillies' Zack Wheeler dazzles in fourth outing amid injury recovery originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . One of the more interesting storylines surrounding the Philadelphia Phillies this season has been the rehabilitation progress of their star ace Zack Wheeler, who has been grinding his way through several starts in the minor leagues, at both the Double and Triple-A levels, after he had surgery to remove a blood clot towards the end of last year.

In his first few outings, Wheeler has had his ups and downs, striking out three batters in his season debut with the Lehigh Valley Ironpigs, while struggling in his second outing, allowing five runs across the plate. Wheeler dominates with the Reading Phillies However, it appears that the former Cy Young candidate was back to his old ways in his fourth minor league appearance on Tuesday night, taking to the mound for Philadelphia’s Double-A affiliate, the Reading Phillies, as they took on the New York Yankees ’ Double-A affiliate, the Somerset Patriots. Wheeler 🆚 Volpe ZacKK wins this round with another strikeout!

🥊 #Phillies pic. twitter. com/c8HoS9ReMy — Reading Fightin Phils (@ReadingFightins) April 14, 2026 Against Somerset, the 35-year-old took to the mound for 5.

2 innings, allowing four hits, three runs, and fanning nine batters in the process, with one of them being the Yankees’ starting shortstop Anthony Volpe, who is with the Patriots for similar reasons as Wheeler. The 5. 2 innings on Tuesday night have been the deepest that Wheeler has gone in any of his rehab starts, with his 72 pitches similarly being the highest amount he’s been allowed to throw all season.