Magical Mets already in the driver's seat, more takeaways from Game 1 of the MLB Division Series | News, results, highlights, statistics and rumors

Zack Wheeler is becoming a postseason legend

Line scoring: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 9 K

It's a little hard to believe him after what he did to them on Saturday.

Not content with simply dominating them, Wheeler directly embarrassed the Mets' hitters in Game 1. He reached 99 miles per hour with his fastball and had it swing and miss 30 times.

Swings and misses don't typically happen that often in playoff games. Wheeler joins Gerrit Cole (33 in 2019) and Tim Lincecum (31 in 2010) as just the third pitcher to record 30 whiffs in a postseason game in the pitch tracking era.

This made Wheeler even more of a postseason legend. He now has a 2.18 ERA in the playoffs, fourth-lowest among pitchers with at least 10 starts.

Also, kudos to Phillies manager Rob Thomson for his faith in his ace. He could have lifted Wheeler after striking out Jesse Winker with one out in the seventh, but he chose to stick with him and was duly rewarded.

Kyle Schwarber's home run wasn't nearly enough

Speaking of playoff legends, Schwarber's name gained a little more prominence in the MLB history books when he led off with a home run against Senga.

It was his 21st home run in the playoffs, which put him in sole possession of No. 4 on the all-time list. It was also his fifth home run in the playoffs, putting him two ahead of any player in history.

But as much as Schwarber's leadoff laser seemed to indicate a good day for the Phillies offense, it was… well, it wasn't. In addition to scoring one of two runs, it was one of only five hits.

You have to ask yourself if rust is a factor. The Phillies had been sidelined all week, and as mentioned, teams that had byes in the first round tended to struggle offensively in the 2022 and 2023 Division Series.

Then again, it's also possible that the Phillies' offense really is that vulnerable these days. It was disappointing in the second half of the regular season when only Schwarber and Nick Castellanos were consistently hot.