Is Zack Wheeler set on retiring after next year? ‘It’s still up in the air,’ Phillies ace says on radio
Phillies ace Zack Wheeler hadn’t been too shy about his plans to retire once his contract is up at the end of next season. But based on his comments during an interview on SportsRadio 94 WIP on Thursday, there still might be a world where he pitches beyond 2027.
“I never want to say never,” Wheeler said on WIP’s “Midday Show” with Joe Giglio and Hugh Douglas. “But it’s still up in the air.”
Wheeler, 35, signed a three-year, $126 million contract extension with Philadelphia in 2024, and he was clear at the time about his intentions to stop playing at the conclusion of the deal. He reiterated that he was set to retire after 2027 in a feature story in The Athletic last June. “I keep getting asked this question, and I guess I set myself up for it,” Wheeler joked to Giglio and Douglas.
But Wheeler, who suffered a blood clot last August and later underwent surgery to correct thoracic outlet syndrome, seems to have softened his stance. He mentioned the uncertainty around MLB’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, which expires after this season, as a factor. If a potential lockout significantly impacts or even wipes out the 2027 campaign, perhaps Wheeler wouldn’t want to end his career on that note.
“It probably depends on what happens next year,” Wheeler said.
Wheeler is still working his way back after last season’s health scare and subsequent TOS surgery. He won’t be ready for the start of the regular season, but he should be back on the mound relatively soon after. But it’s still unclear exactly how he’ll look when he returns.
A two-time runner-up for the National League Cy Young Award and a three-time All-Star, Wheeler has been one of the top starters in the major leagues since signing with the Phillies before the 2020 season. He had a 2.71 ERA in 24 starts last year before he was sidelined. If he can get back to his typical form and stay healthy, Philadelphia’s rotation should continue to have an elite trio at the top in Wheeler, Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo.