After a wacky win on Monday night, the Philadelphia Phillies came out of the gate hot against the Boston Red Sox. Again, a catcher’s interference call played a big role in the win.
The first inning started with a Trea Turner single followed by a perfect hit and run off the bat of Bryce Harper. After falling into a 1-2 count, Nick Castellanos bloopped a single into shallow center for the first run of the game. Harper advanced went first to third on the play.
Then, the Phillies’ old friend, catcher’s interference, came into play again. With Brandon Marsh in an 0-2 count, Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez crossed into the field of play while receiving a pitch while Bryce Harper was trying to steal home. After heaps of confusion, the umpires ruled that Harper scored on a balk while Marsh got on first with a catcher’s interference. For what it’s worth, Harper had the base stolen if not for the double rules violations by the Red Sox.
While the first inning confused everyone (writers included), the Phillies kept the second inning as simple as possible with a ‘ball go boom’ strategy. Left fielder Max Kepler led off the inning with his 11th homer of the season. With two outs, Kyle Schwarber went 410 ft to centerfield for his 33rd home run of the season, giving the Phillies a quick 4-0 lead.
That strong start is all the Phillies needed as lefty Cristopher Sánchez pulled his best Hundini and made the Red Sox’s offense disappear. He went 9 up, 9 down to start the game before allowing his lone blemish, a solo homer to Rob Refsnyder.
After the 4th inning, Sánchez allowed just 2 infield hits. He cruised through 8 innings and started the 9th inning with 96 pitches. He struck out Roman Anthony looking for the first out. He got a lineout to Edmundo Sosa, who entered the game as a defensive replacement for Otto Kemp in the 9th, for out 2. Romy Gonzalez became his 12th strikeout victim to seal the complete game.
“He’s one of the rare guys that, 3rd time through, is even better,” said Manager Rob Thomson.
He didn’t walk a soul in the pole-to-pole performance. It was the 6th double-digit strikeout game of his career and 3rd of the 2025 season. It was his 3rd ever complete game. The All-Star in everything but name showed why he should’ve been on the 2025 squad.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
