When the Philadelphia Phillies needed it most, Zack Wheeler did what he usually does in the playoffs: shove.

After letting the Arizona Diamondbacks tie up the NLCS at two games apiece, Wheeler out-dueled Zac Gallen to lead the Phillies to a 6-1 win in Game 5. With the exception of a solo home run from Alek Thomas, Wheeler shut out the D-Backs and allowed only two other runners to reach third base in his seven innings, one of which came on a wild pitch. He notched eight strikeouts while allowing six hits and a walk. Gallen allowed four runs in six innings, punctuated by towering home runs from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper.

Harper, who has a thing for being spectacular in the postseason himself, talked highly of Wheeler and his abilities.

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“Zack, I mean, you can’t say enough about him,” Harper said after the game. “I told him after the game, I was like, ‘You're one of the best pitchers ever I've played with, man.’ I've played with a lot of good ones and he's easily top three. It's incredible what he does. It's so much fun to watch. I love playing behind him. It's incredible. He's legit, man.”

It seems very likely that Harper's personal top three pitchers he has ever played with are rounded out by Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. That's the type of company he holds Wheeler in. Harper saw a lot of Wheeler before they each made it to the Phillies, as they respectively used to play for NL East foes in the Washington Nationals and New York Mets. Teaming up on the Phils' has made the team a formidable squad.

Wheeler has the lowest WHIP of any 10-game sample size in MLB postseason history — and only has that many playoff games to his name. Without needing any time to adjust to the hyper-competitive environment, the Phillies ace has been absolutely magnificent. He has a 2.48 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 61.2 postseason innings.

The Phillies won’t see Wheeler again this season unless they reach the World Series. With Game 6 (and Game 7 if necessary) of the NLCS being at Citizens Bank Park, Philly has a good shot to get their ace back on the mound in the Fall Classic. He would get the chance to redeem himself from his lone playoff clunker if so.