NEW YORK _ The Mets know that if Zack Wheeler ever puts it all together, he's going to be a truly unstoppable force. They just didn't expect that to mean on the mound and in the batter's box.
Wheeler struck out 11 in seven shutout innings and also hit a two-run double and his first career home run Tuesday night at Citi Field in a 9-0 rout of the Phillies.
Wheeler, who came into his fifth start of the season with a 6.35 ERA, thrilled the crowd by striking out seven in a row from the second to fourth innings.
And Wheeler got the crowd going with his bat, too.
In his first two times up, the left-handed batter saw two pitches from right-hander Zach Eflin. The first went for a two-run double into the right-field corner to give the Mets a 2-0 lead in the second inning.
The second went over the wall in left-center field to make it 4-0 in the fourth. The three RBIs are a career high for Wheeler. He is the third Mets pitcher to homer this season, joining Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard.
The Mets would love Wheeler to join deGrom, Syndergaard and Steven Matz to give them one heck of a 1-2-3-4 rotation punch. (Maybe then they could even live with Jason Vargas as a No. 5.)
Wheeler, who is a free agent after the season, seemed to find his best self last year when he went 12-7 with a 3.31 ERA. But he gave up 11 runs in his first two outings of 2019 before stabilizing in his second two starts (13 innings, five runs allowed combined vs. the Braves and Phillies).
On Tuesday, Wheeler allowed five hits and didn't walk a batter. He struck out in the sixth to finish 2 for 3 at the plate, got a deserved ovation, then went out to the mound for the seventh having thrown 98 pitches.
Seven pitches later, the Phillies were down on three grounders and Wheeler's epic night was done. Of his 105 pitches, 74 were strikes.
Brandon Nimmo left the game after three innings with what the Mets called a "twinge" in his left oblique. Nimmo left last Tuesday's game in Philadelphia in the bottom of the first inning because of neck stiffness.
The Mets and Phillies entered the game tied atop the NL East at 12-10.
The Phillies, whom pitcher Jake Arrieta called out for not looking ready to play in Monday's series-opening 5-1 Mets victory, looked less ready Tuesday.
Second baseman Cesar Hernandez let a routine grounder go through his legs for an error in the second inning for the Mets' third run. Shortstop Phil Gosselin bounced two throws to first, with the first one resulting in an error.
But the Phillie who looked the most lost was their $330 million man, Bryce Harper. One night after getting ejected in the fourth inning for arguing balls and strikes, Harper struck out twice and popped out to the catcher in three at-bats against Wheeler. Harper was removed from the game with the Mets leading 9-0 in the seventh.
Even Phillies third base coach Dusty Wathan committed an error. The Mets were leading 3-0 with two outs in the fourth when Maikel Franco ended Wheeler's strikeout streak with a double. Hernandez followed with a single to left. Wathan unwisely sent Franco home, where Wilson Ramos was waiting with a throw from Jeff McNeil. Franco simply gave up and walked into the tag.
Todd Frazier made it 8-0 in the fifth when he hit a two-out grand slam to left off Drew Anderson. Gabe Kapler had ordered an intentional walk of McNeil to get to Frazier, who made his season debut Monday after starting the season on the injured list with an oblique strain.
Ramos added an RBI single in the sixth to make it 9-0.
