The Philadelphia Phillies began the 2026 season with a 5-3 win over the Texas Rangers on Thursday. Left-hander Cristopher Sanchez drew the start in Philadelphia’s home opener and struck out 10 batters over six scoreless innings.
Philadelphia is looking to bounce back after it fell short in the National League Division Series against the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Sanchez’s performance in Thursday’s win was a good start.
Keith Law of The Athletic recently made predictions for who will win each award at the end of the season, and he predicted that Sanchez would win the NL Cy Young award.
“Sánchez wasn’t too far behind Paul Skenes in value last year, and the Phillies lefty’s reliance on ground balls and low walk rates strikes me as less volatile year-over-year, not to take anything away from Skenes’ production,” Law wrote.
Sanchez earned his first All-Star nod last season. The 29-year-old left-hander went 13-5 with a 2.50 ERA in 32 starts and recorded 212 strikeouts over 202 innings pitched.
Paul Skenes and Yoshinobu Yamamoto might be the early favorites to win the Cy Young this season, but Sanchez certainly can’t be counted out after his strong start on Thursday. The Phillies are going to need him while they wait for Zack Wheeler to return from Tommy John surgery.
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