Phillies explode in 1st, Sánchez dominates en route to win in series finale vs. Giants

It was a sunny, chilly afternoon in South Philadelphia as the Phillies hosted the Giants for the finale of their four-game set. A win for Philadelphia would split the series and avoid a home series loss for the first time since July of 2024. A loss would mean losing three-straight series for the first time since *checks notes* the same time – July of 2024.

Philly’s offense started hot, while starter Cristohper Sánchez (2-0, 2.96 ERA) stayed hot all day. The Phillies jumped all over Giants starter Jordan Hicks for five runs in the first. They would never surrender the lead, and hang on for a 6-4 victory and the series split, keeping their impressive home series winning streak alive.

Let’s breakdown the key moments from Thursday’s series finale.

Sánchez shoves

This header has become common place for the Phillies starter. Sánchez’s imposing six-foot-six frame makes you think power, but the left-hander’s bread and butter is that change-up and today – he pulled the string on it whenever he wanted. Time-and-time again, Sánchez threw the pitch, starting as a strike, that dropped off the table and into the dirt. In total, he generated 24 swings-and-misses – 22 of which were on his change-up.

11 of those resulted in strikeouts, and he finished with 12 K’s in total – a new career high – with the final one coming on a sinker, his only strikeout looking of the day. Phillies manager, Rob Thomson, talked about his starter’s outing – and specifically the change-up – after the game:

“(the change-up) was as good as you’re gonna get, I think, or as good as I’ve seen. I mean, a lot of swing and miss. It was just diving into the ground… he was really good today. We needed that.” 

Sánchez didn’t just finish things off as strong as he ever has, he set the table all afternoon. He threw a first-pitch strike to 20 of the 28 hitters he faced. A 21 pitch first was the only stressful inning the 28-year-old had. The lefty allowed one running in the opening frame, and threw a slider that didn’t slide, and instead flew into the left-field seats for two runs in the sixth.

Other than that, it never looked like he was in trouble. Sánchez finished the game with 7.0 innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on four scattered hits, and surrendering just one walk with those 12 strikeouts.

“He’s better (this year) because the velocity is up from last year,” Thomson elucidated when asked if Sánchez has looked even better this season. “It’s hard. You got to gear up for 97, 98, and then he’s got that great changeup. It’s tough. He’s throwing strikes, he’s getting ahead all day today. He’s really good.”

Offense goes off for once…or not

Philadelphia had action right away on offense. The first five hitters in the order all reached base – four singles and a walk – and they all came around to score. Two RBIs from Kyle Schwarber, one from Nick Castellanos, a wild pitch, and a triple from Alec Bohm led to Philly heading to the second frame with a 5-1 lead.

The Phillies offense forced Giants starter Jordan Hicks (1-2, 6.04 ERA) to throw 33 pitches in the first. What looked like it would be a short night for Hicks turned out to be the opposite, as he settled in and threw 10 pitches in the second and 11 in the third. Three more effective innings from Hicks allowed him to survive through seven innings, keeping his club in it after a rough start.

I asked Thomson post game his thoughts, and if it’s frustrating to have a guy on the ropes and let him climb back into the contest:

“Once you get him to what… 33 (pitches) after the first, you feel like you’ve got him, you know, you’ve got a pretty good handle on it,” Philadelphia’s manager explained. “But at the same time, you gotta give him credit. He did a pretty good job of coming back and getting in the zone, and mixing his pitches… after the first (inning) you think, ‘okay, well we can add on here and we can take advantage of this’, but it just didn’t happen.”

Edmundo Sosa would eventually enter the game in the seventh for Castellanos, and he would add an insurance run for Philly with a sac fly that drove home Bryce Harper in the eighth. That was enough for the offense, as the pitching staff would only surrender four.

It may not have continued all game, but the Phillies remained patient and limited their strikeouts once again – an off-season adjustment that has truly been successful for this squad. Now, they need to take advantage of the opportunities that approach presents.

Other Phillies notes

Some of the struggles from the season did continue today – they went 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position which is much better than the .200 batting average they’ve had in those scenarios this season. Even better than the No. 28 ranked .178 average with RISP they were hitting in the month of April prior to today.

Trea Turner‘s defense was a hot topic this off season among fans and media, alike. Turner had not made an error in the young season – today he committed two. Thomson did not seem worried about that one bit after the game:

“I think you throw today out. He just kind of laid back on that one ground ball that got under his glove instead of moving his feet. Rushed a throw, but at the same time in the 9th inning and Flores’ ball he made a hell of a play. The other play… (with) Lee, it was do or die, so you gotta throw that one out.”

Turner himself has felt like he started this season playing the best defense he has in a while. If he can truly forget today, that should continue.

Philadelphia welcomes division rival Miami to town for the weekend. The Marlins are currently 8-10 and sit in third place in the National League East. Tomorrow’s matchup will see Sandy Alcantara (2-0, 4.70 ERA) face off against Zach Wheeler (1-1, 4.07 ERA). Game starts at 6:45 pm.

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images