I try not to look at the same MLB guys in this space every week, but sometimes these stories simply write themselves. I looked at Phillies ace Cristopher Sanchez last week because he made a start for the first time this season as the NL Cy Young betting favorite. That's still the case as the southpaw takes the mound tonight vs. the visiting Padres, and potential MLB immortality is now within sight for Sanchez.
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Padres vs. Phillies single-game parlay
- Philadelphia "No" to bat in bottom of ninth
- Under 1.5 first-inning runs
DraftKings SGP price: +106
All Sanchez (6-2, 1.47 ERA) did in May was go 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 45 strikeouts and only three walks in 39.0 innings spanning five starts. He went at least seven innings in all five and won in San Diego last Wednesday, shutting out the Padres on six hits over seven with nine strikeouts and no walks. Sanchez became only the second pitcher in the live ball era (since 1920) with no runs allowed over an entire calendar month in a minimum of 30 innings pitched.
The other was the Dodgers' Orel Hershiser with 55 innings in September 1988, part of his MLB-record record scoreless streak of 59 IP. While Hershiser went more innings in his month, he had fewer strikeouts (34) and more walks (nine). Sanchez, the +170 favorite for NL Cy Young (was +700 entering May), became the only pitcher in the modern era (since 1900) with zero runs allowed and at least 40 strikeouts in a single calendar month.
Sanchez is up to 44.2 consecutive scoreless innings, dating to the second inning of the first game of a doubleheader against San Francisco on April 30. He obviously won't be catching Hershiser tonight, but perhaps next Monday in Toronto if his schedule holds. Those 44.2 scoreless innings have broken Hall of Famer Grover Cleveland Alexander's team-record streak of 41 IP, which had stood since 1911.
It's the 11th-longest such run in MLB history, and Sanchez is only an inning from breaking the league mark by a lefty, which is 45.1 such innings by Carl Hubbell in 1933. Doc White in 1904 is the only other southpaw to get to 45 innings.
Opposing batters are 0-for-26 with runners in scoring position vs. Sanchez during the streak. He has faced just one batter with a runner on third and less than two outs during the streak. That was Pittsburgh's Marcell Ozuna, who struck out the ninth inning on May 16.
"I mean, he's just been so dominant. He makes my job easy. It's kind of like playing a video game back there. I just press buttons and then he executes," said Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto. "It's a lot of fun right now."
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Sanchez's money pitch is his change-up, and batters are 8-for-77 (.104) with 35 strikeouts against that pitch in this stretch, including 3-for-52 (.058) with two strikes. He is keeping the ball on the ground, as the average during this streak is just above zero degrees, the lowest in baseball. And Sanchez's ground-ball rate of 58.1% during this run is second-best in the majors.
It's quite possible he becomes only the fifth pitcher to reach 50 consecutive scoreless innings tonight, although the SportsLine Projection Model forecasts him for 1.7 earned runs allowed in 6.0 innings with 6.1 strikeouts and 6.2 hits allowed. At DraftKings, Sanchez is set at Over/Under 19.5 outs recorded, 1.5 earned runs and -147 to earn the victory. At home, his scoreless streak is 28.2 innings, third-longest in Citizens Bank Park history. Roy Halladay holds the mark of 33.0 in 2010.
While San Diego is 8-8 vs. lefties, the Padres are among the worst offenses in the majors against southpaws in batting average (.222, 24th), slugging percentage (.350, 26th) and OBP (.286, 28th). Should Sanchez throw at least seven scoreless innings, it would be his sixth such straight outing and he would tie Hershiser and Don Drysdale for the most consecutive outings of at least that long since 1900. Sanchez is 4-1 with a 1.65 ERA in five career starts vs. San Diego.
Sanchez is countered by Padres right-hander Walker Buehler (3-3, 4.88), as he was last Wednesday. Buehler took the loss but pitched pretty well for a fourth straight outing, allowing two runs on three hits over 5.1 innings in the 3-0 defeat. Buehler "Buehler" was pulled after 58 pitches with two guys on in the sixth, and both came around to score on the bullpen.
Bryce Harper is 4-for-8 career off Buehler with three doubles, but Trea Turner might get tonight off as he's 0-for-18 against him with five strikeouts.
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I'll take the better price of Phillies to not bat in the bottom of the ninth over regular money line for the parlay, and Under 1.5 first-inning runs is also cheaper than alt Under 10.5 for the full game, so let's do that and get one leg cashed early. Neither team scored in the first inning last Wednesday with this same pitching matchup. Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter.
