The Phillies are facing a scheduling oddity to open the second half, and it appears Don Mattingly is using it to squeeze every bit of rest he can out of his rotation.
Philadelphia hosts the New York Mets in a standalone game on July 16, then gets July 17 off because the rest of MLB is still returning from the All-Star break. That unusual setup forced Mattingly to sort through how to line up his starters, especially with several pitchers getting extra time between outings.
One early projection had Aaron Nola starting the first game back and Zack Wheeler going in the second game of the series on July 18. Nola would have fit neatly on schedule, since his last first-half start came on July 10, giving him five days of rest.
But the Phillies seem headed in a different direction. Wheeler is not expected to take the ball on the 18th.
Instead, it looks like Jesus Luzardo will get that start after throwing six pitches in the All-Star Game on July 14. Luzardo’s last first-half start came on July 9, when he shut down the Cincinnati Reds with 11 strikeouts over seven scoreless innings.
Alan Rangel is currently lined up for the series finale against the Mets, which adds another wrinkle to how Philadelphia may handle the rest of the week.
The bigger picture suggests Mattingly is trying to protect Cristopher Sanchez and Wheeler while also positioning both to face the Los Angeles Dodgers. After the Mets series, the Phillies host the Dodgers for three games at Citizens Bank Park, then welcome the New York Yankees, with an off day on July 23.
That setup would give Mattingly room to adjust again, and it could mean Sanchez and Wheeler handle the final two games against Los Angeles if the team decides to skip Rangel’s turn once and use him out of the bullpen during that stretch.
It’s an understandable approach. Sanchez has carried a massive workload in the first half and started for the NL All-Star Team, so giving him a little more time before he returns to the mound makes sense. Wheeler, who was arguably the biggest All-Star snub this year, lining up for the Dodgers series also fits the idea of saving him for a measuring-stick matchup.
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