With the Mets’ 7-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers last night, Zack Wheeler picked up his 10th win of the season and his eighth over the last 10 starts. He struck out nine batters, allowing three runs, albeit on just three hits, while walking two in seven innings. This marked the 12th time this season that Wheeler amassed seven innings in a start and the first time Wheeler had allowed more than two runs in a game since July 14.

While he was admittedly up against a cold-blooded lineup that was inevitably going to find answers the third time through the order, Wheeler still appeared to be running on fumes over his last three innings both in terms of his control and effectiveness.

The culprit there was most likely a line drive from Justin Turner that pegged Wheeler in the chest and caromed away for an infield hit with one out in the fourth inning. Max Muncy would hit a two-run homer just three pitches later, and it would become apparent that he was pitching a different game from that point on.

Wheeler’s first four innings called for just 56 pitches (41 strikes) and saw an electric six strikeouts against no walks. Of the 14 batters he had faced, 11 received first-pitch strikes, and just once – in the first inning against leadoff man Joc Pederson, no less- did Wheeler fall into a hitter’s count. He was well on pace to notch double digits in strikeouts for just the fourth time in his career, but ultimately had to switch things up as he came back out following a long top of the fifth, throwing just 29 of his final 49 pitches for strikes and missing his first pitch with eight of the last dozen hitters he faced.

Normally, and especially following a health scare of that caliber, these sorts of inconsistencies signal the beginning of the end. Furthermore, against an offense like that of the Dodgers, it takes a pretty gutsy pitcher to get back on the saddle and continue getting outs by any means necessary. Yet as he has demonstrated in nearly every start since the end of June and once again yesterday, Zack Wheeler can be that pitcher.

Even if his splitters and curveballs didn’t boast that same knockout edge, Wheeler still battled, allowing just one run on a Cody Bellinger homer with one out in the seventh – the lone hit following Muncy’s blast in the fourth.

His five-pitch pass of Pederson to kick off the sixth snapped a 52-batter walkless streak, but nonetheless came on an inside fastball that MLB’s radar guns clocked at 100.2 mph. Following the walk, Wheeler fanned Alex Verdugo on five pitches – all strikes – the last a great curveball down – before inducing a quick flyout off the bat of Turner to end the sixth.

The narrative wasn’t much different in the seventh, when Wheeler pumped ahead of Yasmani Grandal 1-2 before the catcher rolled over on his curveball for a 4-3 putout immediately following Bellinger’s home run. After Enrique Hernandez walked on four pitches, Wheeler again shifted gears, bullying Brian Dozier with fastballs until a popup to short ended the inning. Practically the entire evening, be it before, shortly after, or long removed from the comebacker episode, Wheeler was the same resourceful, smart, resilient pitcher he has been in what continues to be a phenomenal second half.