Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sanchez continues to prove his place as a Cy Young candidate.
On Saturday, Sanchez shut down the Pittsburgh Pirates, tossing a complete game shutout. Sanchez allowed just six with no walks and 13 strikeouts. It was the fourth complete game of his career and his second shutout.
Through three starts in May, Sanchez has given up just 15 hits and one walk and hasn’t allowed an earned run while piling up 30 strikeouts in 24 innings. According to OptaSTATS, this line by the former All-Star (2024) has only been done once in Major League Baseball history when Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw did so in 2015.
Before Saturday’s start against the Pirates, Sanchez had an ERA of 2.11, but it has since dropped to an impressive 1.82. This places the 29-year-old in fourth in Major League Baseball and first in the National League.
Sanchez is hanging right with his two closest competitors for the Cy Young Award, Pirates ace Paul Skenes, and Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale. Sale (6-3, 1.96 ERA) and Skenes (6-2, 1.98 ERA) both have ERAs under 2.00. Skenes will pitch Sunday, May 17, in the series finale against the Phillies.