Zack Wheeler has no love lost for the reigning AL pennant winners.
The Philadelphia Phillies righty Wheeler drew the start on Friday against the Toronto Blue Jays. In the fourth inning at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pa., Wheeler was on the mound when Blue Jays hitting coach David Popkins began loudly complaining about an alleged illegal delivery by Wheeler.
Popkins, who claimed that Wheeler’s foot was coming off the pitching rubber, was ultimately ejected for the outburst. Wheeler also then proceeded to direct a “F–k you” to Popkins and the rest of the Toronto dugout.
Here is the video of the sequence.
Blue Jays hitting coach David Popkins was ejected for arguing that Zack Wheeler's foot was coming off the rubber. pic.twitter.com/YqBUigXT2j
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) August 8, 2026
After the game, which the Blue Jays went onto win 5-4, Wheeler was asked about the incident. Wheeler, who took the loss with four earned runs over his 5.1 innings pitched, said that he had been pitching that way for virtually his entire career and proceeded to get in a ruthless shot at Toronto.
“They’ve lost a lot of games over there, so they’re probably trying to pick some things up to complain about,” said Wheeler. Here is the video of his full remarks.
"They've lost a lot of games over there so they're probably trying to pick some things up to complain about."
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) August 8, 2026
Zack Wheeler didn't mince any words | @WapnerNewman pic.twitter.com/P0LMMhGTOP
For the three-time MLB All-Star Wheeler, social media videos from Friday did indeed show him appearing to be decently off to the side while delivering pitches against the Blue Jays. But Wheeler is no stranger to feeling disrespected and then lashing out, which he just did against Major League Baseball last month.
