Phillies leave Houston with one run in 27 innings and three losses: ‘We haven’t been very good’
Cristopher Sanchez, who struck out 11, was the latest starter to receive no support against the Astros as the Phillies head to Atlanta looking for answers.
HOUSTON — When Nick Castellanos swung at a changeup in the dirt to end the fourth inning on Thursday, it marked the 23rd consecutive inning without a Phillies run.
Amidst a losing 2018 season, the Phillies were held scoreless for 22 innings, a drought broken up only by a solo home run from starting pitcher Jake Arrieta. The National League adopted the designated hitter in 2022, so Thursday’s starter, Cristopher Sánchez, wasn’t about to get in the batter’s box against the Astros to see if he could repeat the feat.
But he did just about everything else he could to keep the Phillies in what was ultimately a 2-1 loss to Houston.
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Like Ranger Suárez on Tuesday and Zack Wheeler on Wednesday, Sánchez held the Astros to a single run. Over six innings, he struck out 11, five of which came on his slider. Sánchez also got 10 swings-and-misses on his changeup.
“[The pitching staff is] always supporting each other and pushing each other to the limit,” Sánchez said through a team interpreter.. “I think that’s the only way that we’re able to go out there every fifth day. I think that’s the way that we get to throw so many scoreless innings.”
Sánchez’s slider is a tertiary option to his typical sinker-changeup mix, but after revamping it over the offseason, his confidence with the pitch has grown.
“It’s the part of the zone I throw it in,” he said. “Sometimes backdoor, sometimes in. It’s just mixing it up a little.”
One Astros run scored in the second inning on a pair of singles and a hit batsman.
But the scuffling Phillies offense had a tough task before them with Hunter Brown starting on the mound. The Astros right-hander entered Thursday with an ERA of 1.82, best in the major leagues, and he lowered that even further with seven scoreless innings.
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“Different arm slot,” said Phillies shortstop Trea Turner. “That was my first time facing him. Obviously, the [velocity] is there, and he’s got kind of a funky angle to him. A lot of [Pittsburgh’s] Paul Skenes, and a little lower slot with a little more movement on the fastball.”
With his six-pitch arsenal, Brown got Phillies hitters to chase out of the zone. They struck out nine times against him and 14 times total.
And with every strikeout and groundout, the drought stretched on. When Brandon Marsh sent a fly ball to right field in the eighth, deep enough to score Bryson Stott from third, he finally snapped it at 26 innings.
It also tied the game at 1, but the streak’s end didn’t open the floodgates. Stott was the only runner the Phillies advanced past first base in the game.
“I think it’s a little bit trying to do too much, but we also just got to be better,” Turner said. “We haven’t been very good, and that’s including myself, obviously, at the top. So just got to be better and find ways to score and compete.”
The Astros retook the lead for good in the eighth against Orion Kerkering. The right-hander hit Isaac Paredes with a pitch, which came back to bite him when he allowed a pair of singles.
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Paredes, who is in the bottom 14th percentile in baseball in sprint speed, scored from second base. Max Kepler bobbled a hit in left field and wasn’t able to attempt a play at the plate.
“I thought Kerkering threw the ball well,” Thomson said. “The hit batsman, then [Jose] Altuve gets a soft base hit to center field, and then just didn’t get a sinker in. So that’s the way it goes.”
The Phillies went down in order against Bryan Abreu with three strikeouts in the ninth.
En route to a three-game sweep, the Astros scored only five runs total.
“It’s tough,” Sánchez said. “But this is a part of the game, and what we have to do as a team is just keep supporting each other and helping each other out. We’re going to get over that soon. We’re the Phillies.”