Washington Nationals: 5 To Watch In Mets Visit To D.C.

Zack Wheeler

Wheeler is slated to start Saturday afternoon’s game. He had a rough first inning last Sunday night when he gave up a grand slam to Daniel Murphy. But, after the first inning, he settled in and had a decent outing.

The 26-year-old right-hander went seven innings, gave up four runs on four hits, struck out six, and walked two on 101 pitches (65 strikes). 100 pitches was rare for Wheeler since he hadn’t thrown that many since September 25, 2014.

Due to the state of the Mets rotation, they are going to need more of those outings from Wheeler. Before last Sunday, he didn’t pitch past the sixth inning. Plus, he throws about 17 pitches per inning.

One pitch to watch from Wheeler is his fastball. According to Fangraphs, his fastball has an average velocity of 94 miles per hour, but it can get up to 97 mph on the radar gun. His slider has been his go-to pitch as teams have a .125 hitter against that pitch (courtesy of Brooks Baseball).

If there was one hitter to keep an eye on in this game from the Nats side against Wheeler, it’s first baseman Ryan Zimmerman. Zimmerman is 6-for-15 with a pair of solo home runs against the right-hander in his career.

On paper, the Nats have the edge in this matchup with Strasburg on the mound, but Wheeler showed last weekend that he could hold his own against Max Scherzer. Don’t be surprised if this matchup is close on Saturday between these two pitchers.