Sánchez Takes Lead in Wins as Phillies Top Mets 7-2
Cristopher Sánchez outlasts the Mets lineup to collect his major league-leading 18th victory in a 7-2 Philadelphia win.
Cristopher Sánchez left Citi Field with the distinction of a major league-leading 18th win after helping the Philadelphia Phillies to a 7-2 victory over the New York Mets. Sánchez surrendered six hits — including Bo Bichette’s sixth-inning homer — and struck out six over 6 1/3 innings, snapping a tie with the Boston Red Sox’s Sonny Gray for the big league lead in wins. The achievement marked the first time a Phillies pitcher has led the majors in wins since Steve Carlton recorded 23 in 1982.
Philadelphia’s offense did the bulk of its damage on a three-run triple by Justin Crawford and was supplemented by two RBI from Luis Arraez. Alec Bohm and Trea Turner each delivered run-scoring hits, and Kyle Schwarber reached base with a career-tying four walks. The Mets’ run production included Bo Bichette’s sixth-inning homer and a pinch-hit RBI single from Brett Baty.
On the mound for New York, rookie Jonah Tong (2-2) absorbed four runs and struck out five over 4 2/3 innings as the last-place Mets finished 36-45 at home, their worst mark at Citi Field since the 2013 team went 33-48. The Phillies (86-70), who salvaged a split of the four-game series, entered Sunday in the third National League wild-card spot, one game behind the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres and four games clear of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Despite a rainy forecast and the postponement of a ceremony honoring retiring Mets radio broadcaster Howie Rose, the game began on time and wasn’t interrupted; the crowd of 33,611 cheered and chanted Rose’s name after “Hello, Goodbye” was played in the eighth. The Mets drew 2,712,120 fans this season, a drop of 5,870 fans per game from last season.