Phillies’ Zack Wheeler shares another crucial spring training injury update

Philadelphia Phillies star Zack Wheeler is building up for the 2026 season after undergoing thoracic outlet decompression surgery last year. He could be ready to return within the first month or two of the regular season, as Wheeler has continued to take steps forward during spring training. He provided another important update on Saturday, via Grace Del Pizzo of OnPattison.

“Zack Wheeler felt ‘strong’ throwing off the mound this morning,” Del Pizzo wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “His recovery is progressing on schedule. ‘So far, so good.'”

Philadelphia needs Wheeler in the rotation. The ball club watched Ranger Suarez sign with the Boston Red Sox in MLB free agency during the offseason. Aaron Nola struggled across 17 starts in 2025. Andrew Painter features a high ceiling but is unproven at the big league level.

Cristopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo will lead the pitching staff to begin the ’26 campaign, but adding Wheeler to the rotation will only help matters. Wheeler pitched to a 2.71 ERA across his 24 outings in 2025. He was selected to his third All-Star team and even managed to finish ninth in National League Cy Young voting despite making less than 25 starts.

For now, there is no official return date for the veteran right-handed hurler. Barring any setbacks, Wheeler could re-join the starting rotation not too long after Opening Day, however.

He will continue to take steps in the right direction as spring training moves forward. The Phillies will continue to monitor and provide updates on Zack Wheeler’s injury status as they are made available.

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