PHILADELPHIA -- It had been a while since Zack Wheeler recorded the final out of a game.
So, moments after he finished off a one-hit gem in Sunday afternoon's 3-1 win over the Reds, Wheeler had a question for longtime batterymate J.T. Realmuto when they came together for the postgame handshake line on the infield at Citizens Bank Park.
"After we shook hands and did a little hug, when we got to the mound, he turned around and asked me, 'What do we do out here?'" Realmuto said. "It was just a funny little moment, but it was cool to experience that with him. It was a fun day."
It may have gone from “fun” to historic, if not for Austin Hays' solo home run in the top of the fifth inning. That proved to be the only baserunner allowed by Wheeler, who struck out 12 and walked zero while turning in his first complete game since Aug. 8, 2021, against the Mets -- and the first by any Phillies pitcher since Cristopher Sánchez on Aug. 17 last season.
“I knew I hadn't gotten one in awhile,” Wheeler said. “So it was nice to get one.”
This one came in style.
Wheeler became the first Phillies pitcher to throw a nine-inning complete game while allowing no more than one baserunner since Roy Halladay's perfect game on May 29, 2010. Wheeler is the only pitcher in Phillies history with at least 12 strikeouts, zero walks and no more than one hit allowed in a game in at least the last 125 seasons.
So, was this the best start of his career?
"There's been some other satisfying ones along the way," Wheeler said, "but today was probably up there."
Manager Rob Thomson was a bit more direct in his answer: "Yes."
Realmuto agreed with his skipper, though he expanded a bit more on his answer.
"Yeah, for sure," said Realmuto, who was catching Wheeler for the 140th time between the regular season and postseason. "From start to finish, that was as good of command and as good his stuff has been since I've been with him."
As good as Wheeler was, it wouldn't have been shocking to see someone else pitch the ninth after Wheeler finished the eighth inning with a strikeout on his 100th pitch.
Wheeler walked off the mound to an ovation from the Philadelphia faithful, with many assuming his day would be over. But the bullpen stayed quiet in the bottom of the eighth, and -- shortly after Thomson retreated up the tunnel to ask Wheeler if he was good for the ninth -- Bryson Stott set the stage for Wheeler to finish it off when he delivered a go-ahead two-run homer.
Moments later, Wheeler emerged from the first-base dugout for the top of the ninth.
The crowd went into a frenzy, then proceeded to raucously chant, "Let's go Wheel-er!" throughout the ninth inning.
"I had to turn up my PitchCom for the first time in a little bit," Stott said. "That was incredible."
Even though Realmuto is the one calling the pitches, they play back in his ear as he pushes the buttons as a way to help avoid any potential misclicks.
"I could not hear my PitchCom," Realmuto said. "So it was just trusting that I was hitting the right buttons, hoping he wasn't going to cross me up. It was really tough to hear my pitch calls."
It worked out just fine. Wheeler struck out Will Benson to start the frame on his way to retiring the side on just eight pitches.
"It almost felt like the playoff vibe; it got me through that [ninth]," Wheeler said of the chants. "It was really cool. That's why it's awesome to play here in Philly."
Wheeler cruised through the first four innings, retiring all 12 batters he faced on just 44 pitches (33 strikes).
“After the fourth, I thought, ‘This has a chance to be a no-hitter or perfect game,’” Thomson said. “I really did. ... He was just dominant.”
As it turned out, the only blemish on Wheeler’s outing came in the fifth inning when he left a 3-1 fastball out over the plate to Hays, who hit it into the right-center-field seats for a leadoff home run.
“He’s got all the weapons, and obviously, has got the last weapon, which is the ‘compete’ mode,” Reds manager Terry Francona said. “You don’t see guys going out there for the ninth too often anymore. That was impressive.”
Thomson has had a front-row seat to every Wheeler start for the past six seasons. During a postgame press conference earlier in May, Thomson joked that “you can use the same quotes from the last 20 starts” to describe Wheeler’s consistent dominance.
But even Thomson was in awe of Wheeler’s latest gem.
“That was as dominant as you're going to get other than a perfect game,” Thomson said. “He amazes me. He really does.”