PHILADELPHIA -- October Zack Wheeler is different.

He seems to be more locked in, more intense.

He seems to be …

“Calm, honestly,” Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto said Friday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park. “I think Zack doesn't even -- talking to him in meetings before every single game, sometimes it looks like he's actually about to fall asleep, and this is like an hour before the game. He's just that calm. It's almost like he's -- I don't know if he is or not -- but it almost seems like he's meditating. He's just laying there listening and focusing, it seems like. He never really seems nervous to me.”

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Wheeler will start Game 1 of the NL Division Series against the Mets on Saturday afternoon, and the Phillies love their chances in the best-of-five series knowing they have one of baseball’s best pitchers on the mound in Games 1 and 5, if necessary.

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Wheeler just finished another dominant season, putting him in contention for his first NL Cy Young Award. If he doesn’t edge Atlanta’s Chris Sale, it almost certainly will be his second second-place finish in the past four years.

Wheeler is 59-32 with a 2.94 ERA in 133 starts in five seasons with the Phillies. But talented pitchers do not always rise to the occasion in the postseason. Wheeler, however, almost always does. In the past two postseasons, he is 4-3 with a 2.42 ERA in 11 appearances (10 starts).

It is the sixth-lowest ERA in postseason history (minimum 10 starts).

Ahead of Wheeler:
1. Christy Mathewson, 1.06 ERA
2. Waite Hoyt, 1.83 ERA
3. Madison Bumgarner, 2.11 ERA
4. Curt Schilling, 2.23 ERA
5. Ken Holtzman, 2.30 ERA

“I don't think he gets rattled at any time,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “[Aaron] Nola is a lot like that. And that's why he's probably a good Game 3 starter for us going into Citi Field. But I think it's just [Wheeler’s] poise and his calmness that gives him an edge.”

Saturday will be the fifth time Wheeler will start the first game of a postseason series. He is 3-0 with a 1.07 ERA in the first four.

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In 25 1/3 innings in Game 1s, he has allowed 11 hits, three runs and two walks. He has struck out 28.

“I just think he's a competitor,” Realmuto said. “All season long he's extremely consistent for us. He goes out there every day and gives us a chance to win. I think there's something about him in the postseason where he enjoys rising to the occasion. He really enjoys being that guy for us that we all look to and we all count on. I just think there's a little more intensity in him when it comes to the postseason, and that's saying a lot for somebody who's clearly intense all season long.”

Despite the evidence, both anecdotal and statistical, Wheeler said he does feel something before he starts postseason games.

“I think you get nervous any time,” he said. “It's very important, especially Game 1, to set the tone, keep the fans in it and just keep them off the board. Just try to let our team score and keep the momentum on our side. And you always get nerves, but once you get out there they kind of settle down a little bit and you kind of forget about them. Just do your normal job and just pitch and try to do the best you can.”

Wheeler threw his normal bullpen session on Wednesday. He threw a light session in the bullpen on Friday.

He said he spent most of the week with his family, but watched Game 3 of the NL Wild Card Series between the Mets and Brewers with teammates at Nick Castellanos’ house.

“They're a good team,” Wheeler said about the Mets. “They're pretty lengthy in the lineup. They have some power, have some speed on the bases and make contact. So it's a tricky lineup and they're hot right now. They're playing good baseball. Just try to go out there and just minimize the guys on base. And, yeah, throw strikes, try to get ahead.”

The Mets are a hot team. They got serious mojo working for them.

They look a lot like the 2022 Phillies.

But the 2024 Phillies have something working for them, too.

“The Diamondbacks came in here and beat us two games to win the series last year, and that kind of hurt us,” Wheeler said. “But we're much more hungry this year. It kind of left a bad taste in our mouth and we don't want to do that for our fans. All we needed to win was one last [year] and we didn't do that. So we're pretty hungry this year.”