Athletics vs. Phillies picks Wednesday: With Zack Wheeler back healthy and dealing, here comes surging Philly

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When the Phils fired Thomson, they had an MLB-worst 5.80 ERA. But that entire group has largely turned it around by moving Wheeler in and slotting everyone else down a notch. Philadelphia is now 7-1 under Mattingly and in that span, Phillies starters have a 1.53 ERA with 57 strikeouts to just 10 walks in 47 innings. In Tuesday's win over the Athletics, Cristopher Sanchez became the first Phillies pitcher to toss eight innings this year.

"I mean, you feel the pressure," Wheeler said. "We're a really good staff, and we've got to pitch like it. They pay us for a reason. We're, I want to say, the core in a sense. You know? It starts with us putting up zeroes and making that statement when we go out there."

Both Jesus Luzardo and Aaron Nola, for example, have looked much better of late. Any rotation without gas-can Taijuan Walker is an upgrade, and he was released last month. Wheeler has made five career starts vs. the Athletics and is 3-1 with a 4.62 ERA. The SportsLine Projection Model forecasts him at 5.9 innings, 5.4 hits allowed, 7.2 strikeouts and 2.1 earned runs Wednesday.

We might have to start talking about Mattingly as an NL Manager of the Year candidate, although he's not on the FanDuel odds board for that yet. Atlanta's Walt Weiss is the +300 current favorite. There is no rule against an interim guy winning the award as far as I know, but none have won it so maybe it's an unwritten rule type of thing among voters.

Mattingly was the NL Manager of the Year in 2020 with Miami. Clearly this success likely only enhances his shot at the full-time job. It also probably helps that his son Preston Mattingly is the general manager of the Phillies.

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The Athletics plan to start lefty Jeffrey Springs (3-2, 3.96 ERA) tonight. The 33-year-old journeyman has been quite good at times in 2026 and quite bad at others. Springs was lifted after three innings during his most recent start last Thursday in Kansas City after experiencing right hip soreness but has been cleared for this one.

Springs has a 4.50 ERA but no decisions in three appearances spanning eight career innings vs. Philadelphia. The model projects him at 5.8 innings, 4.9 hits allowed, 4.5 strikeouts and 2.4 earned runs. Springs is +202 vs. Wheeler (-288) in a head-to-head strikeouts props at DraftKings.

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Springs is the first left-handed starter the Phillies will face under Mattingly, and they are 0-10 vs. non-opener lefty starters this season. If anything, that means they are due for a victory. Winds are blowing out a bit so wanted to punch the total up a fair amount. Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter.