Phillies take 2nd game of double-header behind cerebral Cristopher Sánchez

If there’s one thing the Phillies can do this season, it’s pitch. Even after the starter for Game 1 of today’s double header, Mick Abel, only went 1.2 innings, the bullpen picked him up with four men combining for 7.1 of one run ball.

In Game 2, they rode one of their four (healthy) horses – Cristopher Sánchez – to victory. After the offense heated up late in the humid first game, they stayed hot – dropping double digit hits (10) again to support Cristopher’s dominant performance en route to a 5-1 victory.

Phillies’ Cristopher Sánchez dominates

Dirty, filthy, disgusting, dominant, overpowering, overbearing – insert any almost any positive adjective you’ve heard talking about an athlete before and that was Sánchez tonight. The lanky left-hander was efficient all evening long. He needed 10 or fewer pitches in five of his seven innings. 13 ground ball outs, coupled with five strikeouts were more than enough for the potential All-Star. He even got in on the fielding game himself, covering twice after Otto Kemp, playing first, ranged to his right to field grounders. Sánchez even grabbed one flipped his way with his bare pitching hand – luckily, his manager didn’t see it.

However, Rob Thomson did see just how good his starter was tonight, and how great he’s been of late:

“He’s been just like the rest of (the starters), just wonderful, really. Strike throwing ability, change up, the swing and miss, the sinker, I mean… he’s been unbelievable. He really has,” Thomson said. When asked about his ability to limit walks, he added, “he’s attacking. He’s attacking the zone, he’s trusting his stuff. He’s just letting it eat.”

Sánchez has really been wonderful when it comes to limiting base runners – tonight was his fourth straight start surrendering no walks, allowing only five hits, and he’s gone at least seven innings in three of those four. Incredible run. He now sits with a 2.68 ERA with 108 strikeouts in 100.2 innings. Sánchez told reporters post game he dreams of being an All-Star every year. Well two years in a row, he’s pitched like one too.

Phillies’ manager Rob Thomson did confirm that his pitcher was “gassed” from the heat, so despite the lower pitch count (85) he never thought about sending him back out for the eighth inning.

Offense strings it together

In Game 1, the Phillies tallied 12 hits but couldn’t seem to string them together until late, when the game was already in hand for San Diego. Still, they fought and clawed until the very end. Rob Thomson has often mentioned how it can be tough to get back up for players after they “empty the tank” in emotional moments like the way they fought to end the day game. For his team to come back and drop double digit hits, this time piling them together time and time again to hang crooked numbers on Dylan Cease in back-to-back frames, spoke to their tenacity – and experience:

“They stay with it, and I’ve talked about it quite a bit,” the Phillies skipper explained. “These guys have a short memory. It’s an experienced group, and they just keep moving forward. They go to the next day and forget about yesterday, whether it’s good or bad, and (they’re) ready to go… It’s a positive thing to have.”

Their attitude was positive, and so were the results from some guys who need to keep proving themselves in July with the trade deadline looming:

• Max Kepler went 2-for-4 with a single and a 2-run HR to right – the hardest hit ball for him on the season. Much needed after his slugging percentage dropped 25 points in June
• Otto Kemp went 2-for-3 with two singles and a walk. He continues to tear it up at home, now slashing .368/.415/.421 at Citizens Bank Park.
• Brandon Marsh also hit a home run 418 feet to dead center the pitch after a failed bunt attempt to lead off the fifth. It was smashed, coming off the bat at 105 MPH.

A lot has been said about Nick Castellanos‘ tick up in aggression in June – swinging at the first pitch nearly 70 percent of the time. He didn’t swing at the first pitch once in the night cap, battled before slapping an RBI single the other way in frame No. 5. Three of his four at-bats went five or more pitches, showing an uncharacteristic patience and defensive approach at times.

All-in-all, they did a great job of avoiding flailing against a pitcher in Cease who, while his ERA and WHIP numbers might not be impressive, is still one of the best strikeout artists in the big leagues. A great bounce back to secure the series before the off day.

Other Phillies notes

Bryce Harper didn’t play the second game of the double header. His manager confirmed after the game it was simple precautionary. “He was available to pinch it, but he felt fine. I just didn’t wanna get him heated up again. Now the game’s on the line, then we go.”

After surrendering a lead-off walk to start his night in the eighth, Orion Kerkering was dynamite. He did surrender a hard line out and a base hit, but settled down and beat Jackson Merrill and Manny Machado with heat for back-to-back K’s. His sinker has continued to improve, and he’s used it more often as of late to great results, making Machado watch it go by to close the frame.

The Phillies will have tomorrow off, returning to action on Friday against the Cincinnati Reds. That first game will see Cincy’s lefty Andrew Abbott (7-1, 1.79 ERA) toe the rubber opposed by Philly’s lefty Jesús Luzardo (7-4, 4.06 ERA). Friday’s contest will start at 1:05 PM.

Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images