Cristopher Sánchez is staking his claim as the best pitcher in baseball at the moment.
The lefty boasts a National League-leading 1.82 ERA. He also carries a 29 2/3-inning scoreless streak into Friday night’s start against the Guardians, which coincides with his bobblehead night. Sánchez has 80 strikeouts, trailing only Jacob Misiorowski (88) and Dylan Cease (84) across the Majors.
Sánchez’s Performance Compared to Zack Wheeler
Sánchez’s performance over his past 40 starts is drawing attention. Going back to last year, Sánchez has a 2.26 ERA with 276 strikeouts in 255 1/3 innings. Zack Wheeler, considered by some as the best pitcher of the past half-decade, has never had an ERA lower than 2.39 over any 40-game stretch in his career.
Elite Company: Phillies Pitching History
Only two other Phillies pitchers have achieved a sub-2.30 ERA with at least 250 strikeouts over 40 outings. Those pitchers are Hall of Famers Steve Carlton and Jim Bunning.
Cy Young Calibre? Sánchez Joins List of Active Pitchers
Sánchez is in esteemed company. Only five other active pitchers have matched Sánchez’s ERA and strikeout totals while throwing at least 250 innings in a 40-game stretch. All five have secured at least one Cy Young Award.
- Justin Verlander (three Cy Young Awards)
- Max Scherzer (three)
- Jacob deGrom (two)
- Tarik Skubal (two)
- Gerrit Cole (one)
That’s a combined 11 Cy Young Awards amongst them.
NL Cy Young Race Shaping Up
The NL Cy Young race is shaping up to be one of the better in recent memory. Here’s how Sánchez stacks up against some notable candidates at the moment:
- Sánchez (PHI): 5-2, 1.82 ERA, 80 K’s in 64 1/3 IP
- Paul Skenes (PIT): 6-3, 2.62 ERA, 63 K’s in 55 IP
- Misiorowski (MIL): 4-2, 1.89 ERA, 88 K’s in 57 IP
- Shohei Ohtani (LAD): 4-2, 0.73 ERA, 54 K’s in 49 IP
- Chase Burns (CIN): 6-1, 1.83 ERA, 64 K’s in 59 IP
- Chris Sale (ATL): 7-3, 1.89 ERA, 72 K’s in 62 IP
There’s obviously a lot to be decided with more than four months left in the season, but the question remains: Could Sánchez be next to win a Cy Young Award?