Philadelphia Phillies: 4 players impacted by a missed season
The Phillies’ prized free agent acquisition from this offseason, Wheeler was supposed to slot in as the team’s #2 to give Nola some competent support. Wheeler is 29, turning 30 next month, and is presumably at his absolute peak.
Many were critical of the huge 5-year, $118 million contract that Wheeler got a few months ago, citing it as a massive overpay by the ball club. But even skeptics agreed that Wheeler could be very good at providing a return on investment for at least the first few years. Now, who knows?
Zack Wheeler’s maximum value in a Phillies uniform figured to come during the 2020 season before he began the hopefully gradual descent that almost always accompanies players as they get deeper into their 30’s. Now, possibly robbed of his age 29/30 campaign, the contract could end up looking like a very bad one for the team down the road if Wheeler is merely above average for a few years before ceding ground to mediocrity. Hopefully we don’t end up looking back on this as being “Jake Arrieta bad“, but there are no certainties.