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In the last few days, we learned that Zack Wheeler's 2025 season is over due to a blood clot in his right shoulder. He has since undergone thoracic outlet decompression surgery, and will miss six to eight months of activity.
That's why his season is over.
That said, the surgery Wheeler underwent is a fairly major one. In fact, it's the same as the one Stephen Strasburg had to go through… and from which he never really came back.
There are success stories (Merrill Kelly is one), but they're rare.
All this means that, even if Wheeler should be able to return to the game in 2026, it's illogical to expect him to be among the sport's elite again.
https://twitter.com/FoulTerritoryTV/status/1960099870884393374
Simply not having a normal winter to prepare for the season might be a problem in itself, but you also have to wonder what all this means for the rest of the veteran's career. Because in reality, if he can't be the best version of himself in 2026, he's going to start running out of time.
Wheeler has already announced that he will retire at the end of the 2027 season, when his contract expires. The pitcher will be 37 by then, and he wants to enjoy his family life.
And so, inevitably, the question arises: if Wheeler pulls out all the stops in his rehabilitation and/or when he returns in 2026, might the idea of bringing his retirement forward by a year start to interest him?
Obviously, we have to hope that the veteran will be able to have two more big seasons before he retires. But right now, there are plenty of reasons to believe that it could be difficult for him to do so.
Let's see if he can beat the odds.
- Kristian Campbell remains in AAA for the time being.
Kristian Campbell will not be promoted by the Red Sox as a Sept. 1 call-up, according to two sources. That doesn't mean he won't be promoted at some point in September as one of the extra two on the roster but not right now
– Christopher Smith (@SmittyOnMLB) September 1, 2025
- Bryce Harper has a long memory.
Bryce Harper is wearing cleats with “atta boy” on them in reference to the Orlando Arcia situation from the 2023 NLDS. pic.twitter.com/R8UliB1Sn2
– Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) September 1, 2025
- Taylor Ward is doing well after crashing into the fence yesterday.
Connected with Taylor Ward tonight.
It's all good news. He's doing well. Had a nasty cut above his right eye, but it was stitched up.
A best case scenario after what we saw on the field earlier today.
– Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) September 1, 2025
- The Mets are still having problems on the mound.
The #Mets officially have a Kodai Senga problem. https://t.co/x9WApUruqe
– David Lennon (@DPLennon) August 31, 2025
- Kenta Maeda will return to Japan in 2026.
Kenta Maeda Plans To Pitch In Japan In 2026 https://t.co/j7UPPYb1jN pic.twitter.com/LSSVBXoem9
– MLB Trade Rumors (@mlbtraderumors) September 1, 2025
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