{"id":101575,"date":"2025-06-13T20:47:14","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T20:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/101575\/"},"modified":"2025-06-13T20:47:14","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T20:47:14","slug":"phillies-j-t-realmuto-makes-one-thing-clear-on-zack-wheelers-retirement-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/101575\/","title":{"rendered":"Phillies’ J.T. Realmuto makes one thing clear on Zack Wheeler’s retirement plan"},"content":{"rendered":"

A cornerstone of the Philadelphia Phillies\u2019<\/a> pitching staff may be nearing the final years of his career\u2014and his catcher isn\u2019t quite convinced. Zack Wheeler, one of MLB\u2019s most reliable arms since 2020, indicated in a recent interview with The Athletic\u2019s Matt Gelb that he plans to retire once his current contract ends after the 2027 season.<\/p>\n

The revelation sparked reaction from longtime battery mate J.T. Realmuto<\/a>, who has caught nearly every one of Wheeler\u2019s starts since his arrival in Philadelphia. Realmuto didn\u2019t mince words when responding to the idea of Wheeler walking away after two more seasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, he can say all he wants,\u201d Realmuto told The Athletic. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine him dominating for two more years and hanging them up. He loves it. \u2026 I\u2019m holding out hope that he keeps pitching.\u201d With those words, Realmuto made one thing clear\u2014he\u2019s not ready to accept Wheeler\u2019s retirement timeline just yet.<\/p>\n

Realmuto and Cotham drive Wheeler\u2019s game plan<\/p>\n

Wheeler, now 6-2 with a 2.85 ERA in 2025, continues to perform like an ace, and Realmuto remains a key figure in his success. According to Gelb\u2019s piece, Wheeler leans heavily on Realmuto and pitching coach Caleb Cotham for game planning. While some pitchers obsess over scouting reports and analytics, Wheeler defers that preparation almost entirely to the duo. \u201cHe cannot do it better than Realmuto and Cotham. Why try?\u201d Gelb wrote, underscoring the trust that has developed over six seasons.<\/p>\n

\"Zack<\/p>\n

Zack Wheeler #45 of the Philadelphia Phillies throws a pitch in the top of the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Citizens Bank Park on June 9, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The results speak volumes. Wheeler has thrown 82 innings this season, recording 101 strikeouts and just 19 walks while maintaining a 0.902 WHIP. Since 2020, he\u2019s amassed a 65-34 record with a 2.93 ERA and a 2.18 ERA in postseason play\u2014elite numbers that have solidified his place among the league\u2019s top arms.<\/p>\n

\"Mets<\/p>\n

see also<\/p>\n

Mets react swiftly, make immediate roster move after Kodai Senga injury vs. Nationals<\/p>\n

<\/a>Retirement talk sparks doubt and hope within Phillies clubhouse<\/p>\n

Despite signing a three-year, $126 million extension this past offseason, Wheeler made it clear in Gelb\u2019s report: \u201cDoesn\u2019t matter.\u201d When asked if continued success might change his mind, he replied firmly, \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

SurveyShould Zack Wheeler reconsider retiring after 2027?<\/p>\n

Should Zack Wheeler reconsider retiring after 2027?<\/p>\n

Still, Realmuto isn\u2019t giving up hope. With their chemistry on full display every five days and Wheeler\u2019s passion for pitching evident, the catcher is betting that performance and love for the game could change his mind before 2027. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A cornerstone of the Philadelphia Phillies\u2019 pitching staff may be nearing the final years of his career\u2014and his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":101576,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2397],"tags":[5,14550,4,144,25,4216,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-101575","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-philadelphia-phillies","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-jt-realmuto","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-philadelphia","12":"tag-philadelphia-phillies","13":"tag-philadelphiaphillies","14":"tag-phillies"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/114678021940652022","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101575"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101575\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}