As is normally the case on Opening Day, the aces of both the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies will take the mound. However, Zack Wheeler and Mackenzie Gore are very different pitchers with different track records.
Zack Wheeler is one of the premier pitchers in the sport and has been for some time. Since coming to Philadelphia in 2020, he has posted a 2.94 ERA across 829.1 innings. He finished second in Cy Young voting last year and has been ultra-reliable. In an era where so many pitchers have gotten hurt, Wheeler has averaged 190 innings a season over the last four years.