PHILADELPHIA – Left-hander Cristopher Sánchez continued his dominance this season, tossing eight scoreless innings, scattering five hits and striking out six in a 2-0 win Sunday night at Citizens Bank Park. Max Kepler drove in a run while Kyle Schwarber smashed his 38th homer of the season in the eighth inning to provide the offense for the Phillies.
Sánchez was fantastic once again for the Phillies, a recurring theme for the All-Star snub. Relying on his changeup, one of the best in all of MLB, he racked up five of his six strikeouts with the pitch.
“It’s just his control and command of his fastball. His changeup is a swing and miss pitch he can throw at any time and he throws it for strikes,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “The velocity, the hitters have to gear up for that and then that changeup with his great arm action gets them out and front, and they swing and miss.”
With an economic pitch count at 84, he seemed poised to go the distance for the second time in his last three starts. Thomson opted to utilize his newest weapon, flamethrowing closer Jhoan Durán, to slam the door shut on the best team in the American League.
“That’s why you get Durán,” Thomson said. “You know how concerned I am with complete games. Sánchez just had one two starts ago. He was very efficient at 84 pitches which was good. He did a great job. He worked out of that jam in the seventh inning.”
The manager noted that before the addition of Durán, his thought process may have been different.
“Probably. I have all the confidence in those guys out there [in the bullpen]. But, let me say this though, because of the complete game two starts ago, I might’ve thought differently.”
Phillies shine
The seventh inning was where his strong start could have unraveled. He allowed a pair of singles to open up the inning. With one out, Edmundo Sosa made an incredible play at third base to throw out Jones at the plate to keep it a 1-0 Phillies lead. After Dillon Dingler walked, Sánchez got Wencel Pérez to ground into an inning-ending fielder’s choice.
Sanchez went out for the eighth and faced the minimum, getting help from second baseman Bryson Stott, who made a head-first diving snag up the middle.
The shutout performance from Sánchez marks the seventh time in his last 11 starts he’s allowed one earned run or less, posting an impressive 1.71 ERA during that stretch.
“Stott made that great diving play. Sosa made that play at the plate. Harper leaping catch on Sosa’s throw and being able to get down before Torkelson got to the base. I thought it was really good. Trea [Turner] also made some nice plays tonight, too,” Thomson said of his club showing off the leather.
Schwarber’s 435-foot blast to deep centerfield ignited the flame inside Citizens Bank Park after the offense was held off the board for five consecutive innings with Charlie Morton cruising through six innings of one-run ball in a tough-luck loss.
Durán poured gasoline on that flame. With his electric entrance brought over from the Twins, it has only been two games, but the addition of the hard-throwing righty has provided a new sense of trust not only for the team, but for a fanbase that has had trust issues with closers for nearly an entire generation.
There was nothing to warrant concern in the ninth. Durán retired Kerry Carpenter, Torkelson, and Riley Greene in order, ending the game with a 102.5 mph fastball that Green whiffed through.
Durán’s second save as a Phillie was just as impressive as his first. Perhaps even more so, setting a franchise record with his 103.3 mph fastball he threw to Greene in that final at-bat.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
