Zack Wheeler offered proof on Sunday afternoon at Citi Field why it’s just plain to foolish to have his name mentioned in any type of trade scenarios involving the Mets this season or any time in the near future. You simply don’t give up on a young pitcher at any price, especially the kind of pitcher Wheeler could turn out to be.
Sure, in today’s world of social media and bull-based blogs, it’s hard to separate fact from fiction. So the mention of Wheeler’s availability in any kind of deal for a high-priced hitter is likely a figment of someone’s imagination. But if there’s a sliver of truth of any of it, Wheeler’s performance in the Mets 8-4 win over the Rangers should put all that to rest.
It wasn’t just that Wheeler allowed only one run over 6 ¹/₃ . More impressively, he hit a rough patch somewhere in the fourth and fifth innings where he lost rhythm and focus, but found a way to battle out of it.
“I felt good and then there were two innings where I sort of lost a little something and I had to find it again and I found it,” Wheeler said. “It’s a big day for me because I’ve not always been able to find it after I sort of lose the rhythm of my mechanics. It felt good to finally get that back and compete.”
His only run allowed came with two outs in the fourth inning when he hung a slider and Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos belted it into the left-field seats for a solo home run. That’s when he was “searching,” as Mets catcher Anthony Recker put it. Wheeler walked the following hitter Carlos Pena, but ended any further damage by getting his third ground out of the inning.
A leadoff single by opposing pitcher Nick Tepesch to start the fifth wasn’t very comforting, considering it was Tepesch’s first major league hit. But Wheeler didn’t allow another hit until the seventh where he was lifted after giving up a double and a single. By then the Mets had a comfortable 6-1 lead.
“It was just a little timing issue, just somewhere in my mechanics, in my motion with the timing,” Wheeler said. “I was able to work it through my mind and fix it.”
That’s what you want to see from a young pitcher — the ability to make adjustments, to figure out what he’s doing wrong and fix it before a meltdown. It shows he’s maturing. It’s more of a statement about his potential than his recent outing against the A’s when he allowed six runs in two innings of an 8-5 loss.
“It’s a learning process,” said manager Terry Collins said. “Zack gets better each start.”
It’s easy to get frustrated with the Mets. When the offense erupts for five runs in the first inning the way it did against Tepesch, you wonder where that has been all season. They were a complete team against the Rangers. Recker’s three-run homer in the first gave the Mets an early lead, the defense behind Wheeler was outstanding led by third baseman David Wright and shortstop Ruben Tejada, and the bullpen was solid except for Gonzalez Germen, who allowed three runs (two homers) in one-third of an inning.
More games like this and you can believe Collins when he says: “We’re one or two pieces away from being really good.” It’s why the manager bristles at any notion someone such as Wheeler might be dealt.
“We’re not going to give up major pieces to help somebody else right now,” Collins said. “We’re trying to win games here, too.”
So hands off Wheeler. He’s 4-8 with a 4.07 ERA after collecting his first win of the season at Citi Field, and learning from every outing.