Christina Kahrl of ESPN lists righthander Zack Wheeler among her 10 Breakout Pitchers for 2015.
“He doesn’t have Jake deGrom’s hair or Matt Harvey’s panache, but the Mets will happily settle for another top-shelf starting pitcher in what might quickly develop into the best rotation in the division within the next year or two. Yes, including the Nationals. Or the Marlins’ rotation of the moment, assuming everyone’s healthy.”
“In the second half, Wheeler really came into his own, goosing his whiff rate beyond one per inning, and he generates a lot of ground-ball outs on his hard slider, curve and four-seam fastball (you read that right).”
“If the Mets had a premium glove at shortstop to compensate for Daniel Murphy’s shortcomings at second, Wheeler would be a quick, easy bet for dominance. In the meantime, count on better run support in 2015 to help him generate a better record as he comes into his own.”
If there’s one thing I’d like to see Wheeler improve on it’s reducing his pitch counts. His final start of the 2014 season was a typical outing for Wheeler, using 107 pitches and lasting just five innings in a loss to the Nationals. He allowed three runs that night on four hits and three walks while striking out seven.
He certainly has the plus stuff, but Wheeler needs to be more efficient if he wants to get to that next level.
Wheeler ended last season with a 3.54 ERA, a 1.33 WHIP and a 187:79 K:BB ratio over 185.1 innings pitched.
He’s often been the subject of trade rumors this offseason, but it’s very unlikely he gets dealt in my opinion. Wheeler has seen all the rumors and he hopes to still be with the Mets come Opening Day.
“I’ve been through it before,” Wheeler said at an event last month. “I know it’s a business. I’d rather not get traded and stay here because I know what’s about to happen here. … If you’re human, you can only look at our staff and say ‘They’re going to make it to the playoffs here soon.’ ”
“I came from the Giants and saw what happened over there. They have a lot of homegrown talent. They’ve won three World Series. It sort of puts a bitter taste in my mouth, and now I want to do it over here and show them a little bit.”
