The Philadelphia Phillies confirmed the worst possible news regarding injured starter Zack Wheeler's potential return by the start of the postseason. The organization wrote in a press release on Saturday that the club's ace received a diagnosis of venous thoracic outlet syndrome and will undergo thoracic outlet decompression surgery within the next few weeks. The recovery time for the surgery is six to eight months, which ends his 2025 season.
Zack Wheeler was diagnosed with venous thoracic outlet syndrome and will undergo surgery in the coming weeks.
— Paul Casella (@Paul_CasellaMLB) August 23, 2025
Timeline is 6-8 months. His season is over. pic.twitter.com/Y9jxZDfacK
Phillies have a huge hole in their starting rotation with Zack Wheeler's season officially over
Philadelphia certainly has capable starters who can do well. Aside from Cristopher Sánchez, Aaron Nola, Jesús Luzardo, Ranger Suárez, and Taijuan Walker have dealt with their share of inconsistencies this year. Nola just returned from a three-month stint on the IL with a right ankle sprain and a rib stress fracture.
Wheeler has been one of the Phillies' most consistent performers in the regular season and postseason over the past several years. Obviously, the biggest concern is with the pitcher's health moving forward, having a successful surgery, and making a full recovery for 2026.
Wheeler had one of his starts pushed back earlier in August due to right shoulder soreness. His pitch velocity was down in one of his last starts of the season. There was immediate concern when Wheeler went on the 15-day IL with a blood clot in his right shoulder. It became clear he may have been unlikely to pitch in September after undergoing a procedure to remove the blood clot. The idea of him pitching at close to 100 percent in October during the playoffs was also in doubt.
The Phillies will need to find a way to bear down and attempt to accomplish their goal of winning the World Series without their best starting pitcher, a very difficult task. However, the rest of the starting rotation has plenty of experience and needs to rise to the occasion.
In the meantime, this is the news Phillies fans were dreading as the club seeks to punch its ticket to the postseason for a fourth consecutive year and potentially win a championship with this core of players. It will need to happen without Wheeler being a participant on the pitcher's mound.