The Philadelphia Phillies have embarked on a stunning turnaround early on in the 2026 campaign, as they have gone from being one of the worst teams in the league to quickly reemerging in the National League wild card race. Of course, it helps when you have a pitcher performing at the level Cristopher Sanchez is currently at.
Over his past four starts, Sanchez has been on an absolute heater, as he has hurled 32 straight scoreless innings. Add in 5.2 scoreless innings to close out his start against the San Francisco Giants at the end of April, and Sanchez hasn’t given up a run in 37.2 innings of work. As he prepares for his upcoming start against the San Diego Padres, Sanchez could find himself making some franchise history for the Phils when he takes the mound next.
Cristopher Sanchez Closing in on Remarkable Mark with the Phillies
Sanchez earned an All-Star selection in 2024, but he truly broke out for the Phillies last season when he earned a second-place finish in the National League Cy Young race. Sanchez made 32 starts for Philadelphia, posting a 13-5 record with a 2.50 ERA and 212 strikeouts. With Paul Skenes being so dominant for the Pittsburgh Pirates, though, Sanchez’s stellar campaign flew under the radar in a lot of ways.
That hasn’t been the case this season, though. Sanchez has been absolutely mowing down opposing lineups as of late, with his scoreless innings streak capturing the attention of the entire league. Through his first 11 starts, Sanchez has a 5-2 record with a sparkling 1.62 ERA and 86 strikeouts.
During this recent stretch, it’s been tough to even make contact against Sanchez, let alone score on him. And when he takes the mound against the Padres, he will have a shot to break Grover Alexander’s franchise record for the longest scoreless streak by a pitcher in franchise history, which currently sits at 41 innings.
“Cristopher Sánchez will take the mound on Wednesday at Petco Park needing just four scoreless innings to surpass Grover Alexander for the longest scoreless streak by a Phillies pitcher since at least 1893 (when the mound moved to its current distance),” Paul Casella wrote for MLB.com.
Cristopher Sanchez Leading the Pack in the NL Cy Young Race
GettyCristopher Sánchez of the Philadelphia Phillies making history
With Skenes struggling a bit to begin the season, Sanchez’s main competition atop the NL Cy Young leaderboard is Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers. While Ohtani has posted an otherworldly 0.73 ERA through his first eight starts, Sanchez’s body of work is more complete to this point, as the two-way phenom has only pitched 49 innings compared to Sanchez’s league-leading 72.1 innings of work.
There is still a lot of baseball left to play, but Sanchez’s consistency throughout the course of his career has earned him the early lead in the NL Cy Young race. For now, Sanchez’s main goal is to go out and help Philadelphia win games, and he will look to accomplish that against San Diego on Wednesday by keeping it off the scoreboard for another extended stretch of action.
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