Zack Wheeler may be one of the biggest All-Star snubs of late. The Philadelphia Phillies ace spoke on that topic after dominating the Cincinnati Reds, expressing frustration over not being named despite having the numbers.
Wheeler’s teammate Kyle Schwarber also opined on the right-hander’s snub. Schwarber is one of six All-Stars on the Phillies’ roster, which is the most by any MLB club this season. But Wheeler’s exclusion isn’t lost on the team.
“It just sucks that we have to deal with it,” said Schwarber on NBC Sports Philadelphia’s postgame coverage. “We dealt with it last year, dealt with it this year now. When someone deserves (to be an All-Star), someone puts up the numbers deserves it, you want them to get that nod.”
Kyle Schwarber on Zack Wheeler’s All-Star Snub
Zack Wheeler was not among the Phillies’ five All-Stars when MLB revealed the rosters on July 5. That significantly hurt his chances of being named to the squad due to a scheduling quirk.
With Paul Skenes, Jacob Misiorowski, and Max Meyer set to pitch the Sunday before the All-Star break, the league had a chance to fix this wrong. While Wheeler was unavailable to pitch, they could have named him an All-Star before naming another replacement.
Instead, the league bypassed Wheeler due to a potential unavailability to participate in the game. The nod went to his Phillies teammate, Jesus Luzardo.
While you could argue that Luzardo’s underlying metrics make him an All-Star candidate, he’s not quite as deserving as Wheeler. The right-hander’s 2.27 ERA ranks in the top five of National League starting pitchers with at least 80 innings this season. It’s also nearly a run and a half lower than Luzardo’s 3.75 mark.
“Say someone gets voted in, but they’re not able to participate, right? But they still get named an All-Star, and you want that for Zack as well. We’re only in this game for so long.
Sure, we want to win the World Series; we all are playing for each other and the organization. But also, when it’s all said and done, you want to be able to look back and feel like you have some things to put some feathers in the cap.”
What makes this extra painful for Wheeler is the All-Star Game will be played in Philadelphia. The right-hander has meant a lot for the club since joining them in the 2020 season and may don their cap in the Hall of Fame someday.
Zack Wheeler Snub Reminiscent of Cristopher Sanchez Situation in 2025
GettyDespite having a 2.27 ERA in 14 starts, Zack Wheeler was not named a National League All-Star.
The incident the Phillies “dealt with” in 2025 was another All-Star snub for a well-deserving starting pitcher. Last season was left-hander Cristopher Sanchez.
Sanchez was passed up as an injury replacement for Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd. The league installed right-hander Jacob Misiorowski, who only had five starts and 25.2 innings to his name at the time. Meanwhile, Sanchez was en route to a unanimous second-place finish in the Cy Young voting.
A year later, Misiorowski’s place in the All-Star Game has caused another Phillies starter to get snubbed. This time, not from a player picked a year earlier than he should have been, but due to an odd scheduling quirk to replace that pitcher.
That’s something that both Wheeler and Schwarber disagree with in terms of process. Even if Wheeler was ultimately replaced on the roster, he could have still participated in All-Star festivities in his home ballpark.
As Schwarber said, MLB careers don’t last very long. Wheeler’s career is coming to a close soon, as the right-hander intends to retire upon the conclusion of his current contract after the 2027 season. There may never be a chance for him to be named an All-Star again in his career.
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