Zack Wheeler is not scheduled to start until tomorrow, but everyone’s eyes were on the Mets rookie right-hander as he threw a bullpen session prior to last night’s 6-4 loss to the Nationals at Citi Field.
And that’s about all the world will know about the session.
“I think I’m just going to keep [what we worked on] between [me and the coaching staff],” Wheeler said. “I’m not trying to make it known.”
Wheeler, who gave up four runs in five — innings against the White Sox on Tuesday, refused to delve into the specifics after Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen suggested the prized pitcher had been tipping his pitches.
“It felt good, just worked on a few things, keeping it simple, not doing too much and it worked out well,” Wheeler said. “I think the instruction will be enough. That’s what every bullpen [session] is, try and get better every time. Tweak things here and there.”
After getting bounced after 5 1/3 innings and 109 pitches by the White Sox, Wheeler was working on changing his arm angle. Mets coaches hinted this week it wasn’t the first time the 23-year-old had tipped his pitches.
“[Wheeler] actually did a little bit of it in Atlanta,” Mets manager Terry Collins said Wednesday night, referring to Wheeler’s major league debut, in which he threw six shutout innings. “It was just that he made better pitches with his fastball in Atlanta.
“This is going to get out as a scouting report, but he’s been tipping his offspeed stuff more than his fastball, so we’ve got to fix it.”
Wheeler hoped the bullpen session would help him resolve the issue before he takes the mound tomorrow. It will be the first time the Citi Field crowd gets to lay eyes on the right-hander, who the Mets received from San Francisco in return for Carlos Beltran in 2011.
“It’s going to be very exciting. It’s going to be big point in my life and I’m just soaking it in,” Wheeler said. “It’s going to be a big game. I’m going to be here for a lot of years to come. This is going to be my home, so I hope I can go out there and do well.”
As was the case in the day-night doubleheader against the Braves, Wheeler gets the chance to see how Matt Harvey attacks their opponent, with Harvey taking the mound last night.
“You can definitely appreciate what Matt does,” Wheeler said. “He’s a power pitcher. I like to think I am, too. I watch him, how he goes about his game, gets certain hitters out. I did that in Atlanta, and it helped me out.”
Coming into the series, the Mets were winners of two straight and went 7-4 on an 11-game road trip that took them from Atlanta to Chicago to Colorado. It was their first positive momentum since they won five straight in May, including a four-game sweep of the Yankees.
Following that streak, the Mets dropped 10 of their next 12, but this team is different with Wheeler providing a dynamic complement to Harvey.
“You have two guys that you feel like you can win every game that they throw,” catcher John Buck said. “It’s good to have those types of guys in the rotation feeding off of each other and the excitement with those two guys throwing.”