Zack Wheeler missed all of 2015 and 2016, then returned to make 17 starts last season for the Mets. During the off-season, Zack reportedly was taking injections to his stomach in order to improve bone strength.
The Mets wound up optioning Zack Wheeler to Las Vegas after a brutal Grapefruit League performance, in which he surrendered 22 hits and posted an 8.10 ERA and 2.40 WHiP through just ten innings of work. Zack otherwise struck out 14 batters while walking just two, but not before Dave Eiland offered a rather harsh critique of his overall situation. The Mets pitching coach essentially said the time for evaluating Wheeler based on his potential is done - the time for providing major league results has come.
That said, Wheeler made his first start of the season for the Las Vegas 51's against the El Paso Chihuahuas this past Friday at Cashman Field. Zack threw 80 pitches with 56 going for strikes (70%). He surrendered just one earned run (home run) on three hits and a walk, and fanned six batters through five innings of work to claim his, and the 51's first victory of the season.
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I'll be keeping a close eye on 24-year old third baseman David Thompson this season. He's on a trajectory to replace Todd Frazier when the free agent acquisition's two year contract expires at the end of the 2019 season. Thompson played a full season at Binghamton last year, where he slashed .263/.325/.429, with 29 doubles, 16 home runs and 68 RBI through 476 at-bats. In 2016, he posted 96 total RBI in just 116 games and 432 at-bats during a season split between Savannah and Port St. Lucie.
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