The Philadelphia Phillies dropped a low-scoring game to the St. Louis Cardinals. The first decision that led to their downfall came in the seventh inning.
Interim manager Don Mattingly pulled left-hander Cristopher Sanchez after six innings and 89 pitches. The Cardinals scored the game’s decisive run on rookie reliever Alex McFarlane in the following inning.
Mattingly explained his decision on NBC Sports Philadelphia’s postgame coverage of the broadcast.
“I didn’t want to pull Cristopher to start with. But checking on him after the inning, he was done. I know the pitch count was okay, at times we’ve sent him back out like that. But tonight he was done.”
Phillies Interim Manager Don Mattingly on Alex McFarlane Decision
GettyPhillies rookie reliever Alex McFarlane suffered his first loss against the Cardinals. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
With Cristopher Sanchez unable to continue further, Don Mattingly turned to the bullpen. With a clean inning, Mattingly turned to Alex McFarlane for the seventh inning in a scoreless game.
The decision ended up proving to be costly in hindsight. The club called up McFarlane from the minors before the game, as the Phillies needed a fresh bullpen arm.
“It really was not a bad spot for him,” said Mattingly. “The walk and the stolen base early with their best basestealer…that put him under the gun right away.”
McFarlane started his outing by walking Jordan Walker. Walker stole second for his team-leading 15th of the year.
It appeared that the rookie would get out of it. McFarlane struck out Alec Burleson for his first career strikeout, then induced a groundout from Jose Fermin.
“He gets us in a spot where you can get out of it, and then Winn gets the big hit.”
Winn lined a single to right to score Walker and put the Cardinals on the board.
The Phillies had a chance to respond in the top of the eighth, loading the bases with no outs on walks. But Luis Arraez grounded into a 3-2-3 double play that snuffed out the rally, and their only real chance to win the game.
Cristopher Sanchez on Early Hook vs. Cardinals
GettyCristopher Sanchez’s excellent start wasn’t enough to prevent a Phillies loss. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
With Cristopher Sanchez being pulled earlier than expected, the natural question was why. The All-Star left-hander spoke to the media, with video courtesy of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Sanchez admitted the heat played a factor in his early exit. He said the weather was uncomfortable but later added he can’t use that as an excuse.
“I’ll never say that, that I’m out of gas or that I don’t have any more pitches,” said Sanchez through team interpreter Diego D’Aniello. “He’s the manager, and we made a joint decision.
“We discussed it. In the end, those things I can’t control. He made the decision, and he’s the one in charge to make those decisions, so I’ll respect that.”
Sanchez finished the night with six scoreless innings, holding the Cardinals to just four singles while striking out seven. It was the type of start the Phillies needed to help an exhausted bullpen, but the offense couldn’t make it stand.
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