Wheeler Starts Friday as Phillies Vs Marlins Rotation Shifts

Zack Wheeler will start phillies vs marlins on Friday night at loanDepot park, giving the Phillies a steady arm after a postponed game forced them to reshuffle their pitching plans. The right-hander will make his second start of the season against Miami, and the club is still sorting out who takes the mound in the second game of the four-game series.

Wheeler Gets Friday Night

Wheeler is set to pitch on five days' rest after starting in Atlanta last Saturday. He allowed two runs in five innings in that outing, the kind of workload that fit the Phillies' need for a cleaner turn through the rotation after Thursday's doubleheader.

Andrew Painter was originally lined up to pitch Thursday, but Wednesday night's game against the San Francisco Giants was postponed and changed the schedule. That left the Phillies adjusting on the fly before they opened the Miami series.

Sánchez And The Doubleheader

Cristopher Sánchez handled Game 1 of Thursday's doubleheader, and the Phillies used a bullpen game in Game 2. They swept both games with two walk-off wins, but the twin results also helped set up the rotation problem they are now working through.

The club wanted to avoid using Sánchez and Painter on the same day, and that pushed the planning deeper into the series. If both had been used together, the Phillies would have been without a big-league starter available on regular rest on Monday.

Mattingly's Next Call

Don Mattingly said the Phillies were still discussing who to start on the mound for the second of the four-game series with the Marlins, but the Phillies will have a decision made soon. For now, Wheeler gives them the first game in Miami, and the rest of the series depends on how they finish solving the back end of the rotation.