Zack Wheeler is still working his way back on the mound for the Philadelphia Phillies as he recovers from venous thoracic outlet syndrome, which he was diagnosed with last summer. He's making good progress, and he recently opened up about the details of his surgery.
“Basically all they do is go in, chop the bone, get rid of that [rib] because that’s what’s causing it, get rid of the blood clot, and then open up the vein,” Wheeler said via Scott Lauber of the Inquirer. “My vein closed back, I think two different times, so they had to go back and open it. If it happened again, I think they were just going to do a stent. But so far, so good.
“And that’s really about it, honestly.”
Just over a week ago, Wheeler was seen throwing during spring training for the first time since his surgery, which was good news for him and the Phillies.
Wheeler noted that this wasn't as bad as the other injuries that he's had in the past, and there shouldn't be a reason to think that he won't come back as the dominant player he's always been.
“I don’t think there’s any reason why I wouldn’t be who I am,” Wheeler said. “It’s not like a major surgery. I just got a rib taken out. It might sound like a crazy situation, or crazy surgery, or whatever, but mentally, I’m not really stressed about it. Physically, I’m not really stressed about it.”
Wheeler won't be ready for Opening Day, but he will be back at some point for the Phillies. For a guy who has gone 69-37 with a 2.91 ERA, 1,094 strikeouts, and 1.016 WHIP in 979 innings pitched, the Phillies will want to see him back sooner rather than later.
