There was a lot that went wrong for the Philadelphia Phillies that contributed to a brutal start to the 2026 regular season. One of the biggest disappointments was the performance of the starting rotation, which was supposed to be a strength of the team. Taijuan Walker, Aaron Nola and Jesus Luzardo all had struggles, leading to the Phillies having the worst starting pitching ERA a few weeks into the season. It was one of the reasons that Rob Thomson was fired 28 games into the season and replaced by Don Mattingly on an interim basis. The team has been performing at a much higher level since the change, and starting pitching is a big reason why. Of course, it always helps when you get a Cy Young contender back in the mix. On April 25, Zack Wheeler made his return from the injured list after recovering from a blood clot and thoracic outlet syndrome.…