Daily News | How watching Jacob deGrom helped the Phillies’ Zack Wheeler harness his fastball
It isn’t a coincidence.
Wheeler, who will start Sunday for the Phillies in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, admitted he harnessed his fastball command by watching deGrom when they were teammates with the New York Mets.”He threw a couple bullpens in between each start, and one bullpen would literally just be 10 or so glove-side fastballs. That was it,” Wheeler said. “And then the next day, he’d do his normal bullpen, and then he’d start off the next day doing the exact same thing.
”I really concentrated on doing that, and ever since, I’ve been able to command for the most part that side of the plate. And I think my command all around got a lot better because that is the hardest pitch to throw — a glove-side fastball — pretty consistent.” Wheeler and deGrom have nearly identical repertoires, right down to their upper-90s fastballs. The ace right-handers also feature nasty sliders and while sprinkling in curveballs and the occasional changeup., former Mets pitching coach Dave Eiland likened him to deGrom, a comparison Wheeler welcomes.
”He’s one of the best pitchers, if not the best,” Wheeler said. “You try to take some things from that.”
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