The Philadelphia Phillies are the hosts of the 2026 Major League Baseball All-Star Game this season, as all 30 clubs will send representatives to Philadelphia for the All-Star festivities this season.
There are sure to be plenty of Phillies representatives, with Cristopher Sanchez, Jhoan Duran, Bryce Harper, and Kyle Schwarber the obvious candidates. But, there might be a very fun storyline developing for the NL All-Star Team.
ESPN’s David Schoenfield is predicting that Phillies ace Zack Wheeler, after coming back from thoracic outlet syndrome, would earn an All-Star spot in what he described as one of the “best stories” of the MLB season.
Phillies’ Zack Wheeler predicted to earn All-Star nod as one of MLB’s ‘best stories’ of 2026
“With Ohtani counted on the position player side, one spot remains. Let’s give it to hometown favorite Zack Wheeler, who began the year on the IL after recovering from last year’s thoracic outlet surgery and has been outstanding in eight starts since his return,” Schoenfield writes.
Wheeler’s comeback from this surgery, which forced him to have a rib removed, was one that had a lot of questions for Wheeler about his future in professional baseball.
But if there were any doubters, Wheeler has more than proven them wrong, piecing together an incredible 2026 season at 36 years old, coming off thoracic outlet surgery this offseason.
MORE: Phillies extending Cristopher Sanchez to his $107 million deal was genius
In eight starts, Wheeler has a 2.31 ERA with a 5-1 record and 2.3 bWAR for the Phillies. His 50.2 innings with 48 strikeouts and 3.52 FIP aren’t exactly the best splits in MLB, but his performance this season, coming off such a serious issue, is incredibly impressive.
“It’s not exactly a comeback story, but given the unknown recovery from that surgery, he has been one of the best stories of the season,” Schoenfield writes.
While there are plenty of deserving pitchers around MLB for one of these All-Star spots, Wheeler getting the nod would be a well-deserved honor for a pitcher who has been one of the best stories of the MLB season so far in 2026.
More MLB news:
