Cleveland’s ninth-inning pinch hitter, Kyle Manzardo, swatted a solo home run off Jhoan Duran to provide the only crooked numbers on the scoreboard in a 1-0 loss by the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.
Phillies starter Cristopher Sanchez was dominant, shutting down Cleveland by allowing four hits across eight innings with six strikeouts.
Unfortunately, Guardians starter Gavin Williams was equally effective in the pitcher's duel, posting a nearly identical stat line (four hits over six innings) but with more strikeouts (11) than his counterpart.
Cade Smith picked up his 17th save of the season for Cleveland in the win.
Phillies fans suffered through a rainy and windy evening in the series-opening loss to the Guardians, only to watch Manzardo smack his fifth round-tripper and 17th RBI of the early season to secure a tight road win.
Despite the loss, Sanchez established a new modern-day record for consecutive scoreless innings by a Phillies starting pitcher at 37 2/3 innings. He tied Larry Anderson in the third inning and sailed past Cliff Lee’s mark (34 scoreless innings in 2011) in the fifth inning.
Sanchez will attempt to establish a brand new record during his next start (likely in San Diego) by chasing down Grover Cleveland Alexander’s 41 scoreless frames from the 1911 campaign.
"I don't know, I've seen anything quite like it," Phillies manager Don Mattingly said following the loss. "He's pretty amazing every time out. He seemingly makes it look easy. Obviously, I know it's not. He's just a tough mix (of pitches)."
Philadelphia and Cleveland are scheduled to return to action tomorrow afternoon at 4:10 PM in South Philadelphia.
However, scattered showers are expected in the area tomorrow, so keep an eye out for updated information regarding a start time for Saturday (and/or Sunday’s) inter-division battle.
For more on the Phillies, visit MetroPhiladelphia.com.
