NEW YORK — When Phillies manager Rob Thomson asks Cristopher Sánchez how he’s doing in between innings, usually the lefty responds with a variation of, “Oh, I’m good.”
But on Tuesday, when Thomson checked in on Sánchez after the second inning of what would end up a 5-1 Phillies loss to the Mets, he only nodded.
“Tell me what’s going on,” Thomson said.
Sánchez finally conceded that his left forearm was tight. Thomson immediately lifted him from the game and brought in reliever Joe Ross.
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“He saw the doc,” Thomson said. “Not expecting structural damage, but we’ll reevaluate. We’ll know in the next couple days.”
Sánchez had labored through those two innings, needing 58 pitches to secure six outs. Phillies pitching coach Caleb Cotham made two mound visits.
Catcher J.T. Realmuto, who found out alongside Thomson in the dugout tunnel about Sánchez’s injury, had noticed something was off about Sánchez in his pregame bullpen session.
“He just a little more erratic than he usually is,” Realmuto said. “His fastball command wasn’t very good at all. His pitches weren’t doing what they normally do.”
Sánchez noticed that too, although he said he didn’t start feeling the tightness until after the second inning. It was a completely new sensation for him, though he was optimistic after the game.
“We did some movement exercises in the training room, the doc checked me out, and that’s how I feel, positive we’re not going to have to be worried about this,” Sánchez said through a team interpreter.
He allowed two runs on four hits, and walked two batters. Sánchez didn’t throw his changeup for a called strike, and his pitches had diminished velocity. His sinker sat at 94.7 mph, which is 1.2 mph slower than his average this season. His changeup, averaging 84.9 mph, was down 1.8 mph.
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Meanwhile, the Phillies offense was stagnant again, and the bullpen woes continued. Tanner Banks and Orion Kerkering collectively allowed three earned runs to the Mets in the seventh inning, giving New York some separation.
Ross held off the Mets for three innings of emergency relief. The right-hander has had an up-and-down start to his Phillies tenure, but only allowed one hit on Tuesday to keep the Phillies in the game.
But the bats couldn’t get anything going. Realmuto doubled in the second inning off Mets starter Griffin Canning, and came around to score on a single from Johan Rojas. But that was the extent of their offense.
The Phillies drew leadoff walks in the sixth and eighth innings, but each time the baserunner was immediately erased by a double play. They scattered eight hits, but left nine runners on base.
“Just not getting the big hit enough,” Realmuto said. “We’re getting a lot of runners on base. We’re just hitting into too many double plays, not getting enough hits with runners in scoring position. So especially against a team that’s this good and pitches this well, we have to capitalize when we get runners out there.”
Jordan Romano made his first appearance since being shelled for six runs on Saturday, and overcame one walk to post a scoreless frame. But issues began when Banks took over in the seventh. Francisco Lindor hit a soft ground ball that Banks fielded, but he overthrew Bryce Harper at first base, allowing Lindor to advance to second.
After Banks induced a groundout to Juan Soto, Kerkering took over to face Pete Alonso, the Mets’ hottest hitter this season.
Kerkering struggled with his command. Alonso laced a double down the left field line, scoring Lindor, and Kerkering then walked Mark Vientos. After falling behind 2-0 in the count to Jesse Winker, Kerkering intentionally walked him to load the bases, which backfired when Luis Torrens hit a two-run single.
“Kerkering, he’s just not making pitches right now when he needs to,” Thomson said. “Threw some pitches out over the middle of plate. That’ll be ironed out.”
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The search for an answer in the bullpen becomes more pressing if Sánchez has to miss his next start. The Phillies have some flexibility due to off days on Thursday and Monday, which could allow them to flip starters and give Sánchez extra time without placing him on the injured list.
Rotation reinforcements are on the way soon. Ranger Suárez, who has been working his way back from low back stiffness, threw 59 pitches over five shutout innings in a rehab start for triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday. He allowed two hits and two walks and struck out five. Suárez is scheduled to start again on Sunday.
But if Sánchez’s tightness turns out to be something more serious, it would be a big blow regardless.
“He’s one of the best pitchers in the National League,” Thomson said. “So other people would have to pick it up. But I’m not anticipating that yet.”
