PHILADELPHIA — Zack Wheeler was a one-man show for six innings Thursday.
The Mets righty delivered a second straight strong start on the mound and was the only Met to secure a hit off Aaron Nola in what turned into a crushing 6-3 loss to the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.
Wheeler allowed just two hits over six innings, the only blemish being a solo home run from Bryce Harper in his final frame. He built on his last start, when he tossed seven innings of one-run baseball in a win over the Cubs.
“I do feel comfortable out there right now,” said Wheeler, who struck out seven and walked two. “When I’m able to consistently hit my spots, it makes it a lot easier. When the offspeed’s there, it also makes it a lot easier. Everything’s starting to come around.”
Wheeler, who may be on his way to getting traded before the July 31 deadline, lowered his ERA to 4.51 after he had been roughed up in back-to-back starts before taking the mound against the Cubs. He allowed a single to start the bottom of the first, then didn’t give up another hit until Harper’s homer in the sixth as he traded zeroes with Nola.
“[Nola] was fantastic. Wheeler was just as fantastic, except for the solo homer,” manager Mickey Callaway said.
Mired in a 20-for-117 (.171) slump over the last 33 games, Robinson Cano got a scheduled day off Thursday before pinch hitting and striking out in the eighth inning. It was part of the plan the Mets had to make sure he stayed healthy coming back from two stints on the injured list for a strained quad.
“I think after today it can be a little bit more flexible, kind of like we’ve done with [Jeff] McNeil, kind of opened up his playing time a little bit,” Callaway said.
Cano was slow in getting to first base Wednesday night while grounding out in the ninth inning of a 4-4 game, but Callaway did not take issue with it.
“I didn’t think he loafed,” Callaway said. “I actually was watching the play. I’d have to go back and look at it on film. But nothing stood out to anybody in the dugout at that point.”
The four-game sweep was the Phillies’ first over the Mets since August 2007.
