Phillies waste splendid outing from ace Zack Wheeler as bats go cold in Game 1 loss to Mets

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Zack Wheeler touched 99 mph as he threw all 11 of his pitches for strikes in the first inning Saturday, the Philadelphia Phillies' ace offering a tantalizing peek at his dominant playoff outing ahead.

Wheeler kept wheeling and dealing from there in the NL Division Series opener and stuck it to his old team, the New York Mets — nine strikeouts and a whopping 30 swings-and-misses over 111 pitches in seven shutout innings.

It was a bit of pitching mastery for the two-time All-Star.

“You can’t make mistakes in the playoffs,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler sure didn't make many, lifted after he held the Mets to just one hit with Philadelphia clinging to a 1-0 lead.

But once he left, the wheels fell off for the Phillies.

Maybe it was the five-day layoff for the NL East champions, a spell of down time that also doomed a pair of 100-win Braves teams each of the last two seasons dumped by the Phillies in the Division Series.

Maybe the Mets are just riding the kind of late-season wave the Phillies enjoyed each of the last two years on their way to deep playoff runs.

Whatever the cause, the Phillies failed to solve Kodai Senga or the four Mets relievers who followed him, as they quieted the heart of Philadelphia's batting order. All-Star relievers Jeff Hoffman and Matt Strahm folded in the eighth inning — five runs allowed after three straight batters reached following 0-2 counts — and let the Mets escape Saturday with a 6-2 win in Game 1.

“It was stunning, it was, to see Hoffy and Strahmy give it up like that,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “But that’s baseball sometimes. They haven’t done that since we’ve had them, really.”

Thomson also gave props to Wheeler, though.

The right-hander, who left the Mets in free agency following the 2019 season, forced 14 swings-and-misses over the first three innings and deftly escaped his only jam in the fourth when he got Jose Iglesias to ground into an inning-ending double play.

“He was pretty nasty,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “When you’re throwing 98 (mph) and locating the way he was locating, up at the top of the zone, you know, in and out, and then the sweeper, the split. I mean, unbelievable. He was pretty much unhittable today. And that’s who he is.”

Kyle Schwarber backed Wheeler with a leadoff homer, a Schwarbomb that lived up to its name when he socked Senga's third pitch into the second deck.

Schwarber, who hit 38 home runs in the regular season, including a record 15 leadoff homers, sent Phillies fans into a frenzy right away. Schwarber has 21 career playoff home runs in 66 games. That ranks fourth behind Manny Ramirez (29), Jose Altuve (27) and Bernie Williams (22).

Jimmy Rollins and Derek Jeter both had three career leadoff home runs during the playoffs.

From there, it was a dizzying repeat of the Phillies' anemic offensive collapse at home in Games 6 and 7 of the NL Championship Series last season against Arizona. Schwarber added a bloop single in the third inning but none of the next 19 Phillies got a hit.

All-Stars Trea Turner and Alec Bohm were each hitless in four at-bats. Bryce Harper walked twice and doubled, while Nick Castellanos was 1 for 4 with two strikeouts.

“As an offense, we wasted that start,” Harper said. “It's the same thing, man. Chasing balls in the dirt. Didn't work deep in the counts like we should have. We've got to understand what they're going to try to do to us and flip the switch as an offense.”

Philadelphia lost a Game 1 of any postseason series for the first time since the 2010 NLCS.

The Phillies won a Wild Card Series each of the last two seasons before they twice knocked out 100-win Atlanta teams in the NLDS. The Braves blamed a layoff as the root cause of their early exits, so the Phillies kept busy to avoid getting stale over five off days. The Phillies held an intrasquad scrimmage, took batting practice, had infield drills and pitchers' fielding drills as they tried to keep a routine as close to normal as it gets during the regular season.

Thomson didn't think the cold bats and ragged effort from the bullpen could be blamed on rust.

“I don’t think so. They pitched on Wednesday, and they threw the ball fairly well,” Thomson said. “I’d have to look at the tape. It’s probably about execution, and leaving some pitches in the middle of the zone.”

The Phillies have All-Star and new dad Cristopher Sánchez on the mound for Game 2.

“You can't harp on this one,” Harper said. “You've got to flush it, come back tomorrow. Sanchy on the bump, looking forward to that.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

New York Mets' Pete Alonso follows the flight of the ball after hitting a run scoring sacrifice fly off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Matt Strahm during the eighth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Zack Wheeler pitches during the fifth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler reacts after New York Mets' Jose Iglesias hit into a double play during the fourth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler checks the runner at first during the seventh inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies second base Bryson Stott catches a fly out hit by New York Mets' Jose Iglesias during the seventh inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler acknowledges fans after the seventh inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Matt Strahm walks to the dugout after being released during the eighth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Matt Strahm is released during the eighth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies first base Bryce Harper rests during a pitching change during the eighth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper, second right, looks on from the dugout with teammates during the ninth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the New York Mets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

The path for the NFL's Washington Commanders to return to the nation’s capital is clear after an on-again, off-again saga in Congress ended early Saturday with a postmidnight reprieve.

The U.S. Senate passed a resolution to transfer the land including old RFK Stadium from the federal government to the District of Columbia. The D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act passed by voice vote at roughly 1:15 a.m. after more than a year of lobbying and support from Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., district Mayor Muriel Bowser, Commanders controlling owner Josh Harris and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

“We are extremely grateful that our elected officials have come together on a bipartisan basis to give Washington, D.C., the opportunity to decide on the future of the RFK Stadium site," Harris said. "This bill will create an equal playing field so that all potential future locations for the home of the Washington Commanders can be fairly considered and give our franchise the opportunity to provide the best experience for all of our fans.”

The RFK Stadium land provision was part of Congress’ initial short-term spending bill Tuesday before it was torpedoed by President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk, the latter of whom amplified misinformation about the site on his social media platform X. Two versions of the House's slimmed-down bill, including the one that passed Friday night to avoid a government shutdown, did not include it.

Giving the local government control of the land for the next 99 years allows for the decaying husk of the old stadium to be torn down and the site redeveloped for any number of things. One of the possibilities is a football stadium and surrounding entertainment options at the franchise's former home.

“We appreciate the bipartisan group of Congressional leaders who made this important breakthrough possible,” the NFL said in a statement. “Washington, D.C., will now have a long-overdue seat at the table when it comes to the location of a new Commanders stadium.”

Bowser called it “a win for D.C., for our region and for America.”

“Everybody loves a good comeback story — and that’s D.C.’s story,” she said.

All that awaits is President Joe Biden's signature to become law, which could come as soon as Saturday. Comer went as far as saying that Senate passage of the bill is “a historic moment for our nation's capital.”

“If Congress failed to act today, this decaying land in Washington would continue to cost taxpayers a fortune to maintain,” he said. “Revitalizing this RFK Memorial Stadium site has been a top economic priority for the city. ... This bipartisan success is a testament to the House Oversight Committee’s unwavering effort to protect taxpayers and our full commitment to ensuring a capital that is prosperous for residents and visitors for generations to come.”

Playing in Washington again is no sure thing. The Commanders are also considering other places in the district, Maryland and Virginia to build a stadium in the coming years.

Their lease at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, runs through 2027. Harris called 2030 a “reasonable target” for a new stadium.

The team played at RFK Stadium 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) east of the Capitol from 1961-96 before moving to Maryland. Harris and several co-owners, including Mitch Rales and Mark Ein, grew up as Washington football fans during that era, which included the glory days of three Super Bowl championships from 1982-91.

Ein said on social media, “Still many steps to go and even bigger than a possible stadium last night’s bill was an extraordinary moment of bi-partisan and regional cooperation to do something big and important and get 174 acres of unused, blighted and critical land to DC so they can bring it back to life.”

Part of the way the provision got into the bill initially involved an agreement between the team and Maryland to tear down the current stadium in a timely fashion and redevelop the site with a project of equal economic impact, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press earlier this week on condition of anonymity because the deal was not being publicized.

After the Senate greenlit the RFK Stadium land transfer, Maryland Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, both Democrats, said they continued to believe their state's partnership with the team should continue long into the future.

“After working to level the financial playing field, and receiving assurances that should the team move they will redevelop the existing site in a manner that meets the needs of the community, tonight we supported the proposed land transfer legislation,” Cardin and Van Hollen said. "We have always supported the District’s effort to control its own land, and through regional discussions and cooperation, our concerns with this proposal have been addressed.”

The team has played games in Maryland since 1997 and practices in Ashburn, Virginia, not far from Dulles International Airport.

A return to the district would be another victory for Bowser, who on Thursday celebrated the start of an $800 million downtown arena renovation that is keeping the NBA's Wizards and NHL's Capitals in town. At that news conference, she took aim at Musk for sharing incorrect information on X, formerly Twitter, about taxpayers footing the bill for a new stadium.

The bill specifically prohibits the use of federal funds for a stadium on the site, “including training facilities, offices, and other structures necessary to support a stadium.”

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

FILE - A vehicle pushes up pikes of snow after trucks dump their loads of snow in the parking lots of RFK Stadium in Washington, Monday, Jan. 25, 2016. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)