Cristopher Sánchez allows seven runs as the Cubs crush the Phillies in series finale

CHICAGO — A few days ago, as the Phillies settled into the tight quarters of the visiting clubhouse at Wrigley Field, Rob Thomson called everyone together for some announcements. He saved the best for last.

Cristopher Sánchez was the National League’s pitcher of the month.

“I mean,” Thomson said, “the place just erupted.”

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It was an appropriate bow to tie on the best stretch of Sánchez’s career. He yielded a total of six earned runs in five starts in June. And in the middle of it all, the 27-year-old lefty signed a four-year, $22.5 million contract extension.

How’s that for a dream month?

Sánchez’s feet still had barely touched the ground Thursday when the Cubs scored one more earned run against him than his entire June total. He didn’t make it out of the fifth inning in a 10-2 Fourth of July drubbing that busted the Phillies’ three-game winning streak and sent them to Atlanta with an 8½-game lead in the NL East.

“Command,” Sánchez said, offering a one-word summation of his day through a team interpreter. “I just missed some pitches that I shouldn’t have missed.”

It happens. Given the heights from which Sánchez came — a 101-pitch, three-hit shutout in his last start — regression was inevitable. Entering the day, he hadn’t allowed a run in 16 innings — or a homer in 68. Those streaks reached 19 and 71 before Ian Happ slugged a sinker into the left-field bleachers for a three-run shot that erased an early 2-0 Phillies lead.

The Phillies didn’t see much use dwelling on it. Not with a series looming against the Braves.

It will be 96 days since the last meeting of the NL East powerhouses, and so much has changed. The Braves lost their best pitcher (Spencer Strider) and player (Ronald Acuña Jr.) to season-ending injuries; the Phillies have the best record in baseball (57-30) but not banged-up Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and J.T. Realmuto. They’re coming back, though — and maybe next week, too.

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“They’re a good club,” Thomson said of the diminished Braves. “They are. They’ve got good pitching. I know everybody talks about how their offense hasn’t clicked yet, but they’ve got good offense. They’re a powerful team. We’ve got our hands full. Just go get ‘em.”

Sánchez’s troubles were rooted in the same place the Phillies often cite for his successes. He fell behind too many hitters and issued three walks, his highest total in a start since May 13.

In the fourth inning, for instance, Sánchez walked Cody Bellinger and gave up a single to Seiya Suzuki before Happ went deep, the first homer allowed by Sánchez since April 29.

It got worse. Sánchez walked Dansby Swanson and gave up a double to David Bote before allowing a two-run single to Nico Hoerner for a 5-2 Cubs lead.

Bellinger and Suzuki knocked Sánchez from the game with back-to-back singles to begin the fifth inning. When Seranthony Domínguez gave up Happ’s second three-run shot of the game, it all but cued up “Go Cubs Go,” the postgame victory theme at Wrigley.

Thomson pinned Sánchez’s spotty control on fatigue from the complete game six nights earlier. Sánchez shrugged off that idea, likely not wanting to use it as an excuse.

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And although a July 4 dud, which hiked Sánchez’s ERA from 2.41 to 2.96, won’t do much to dim his chances of being picked for the All-Star Game (pitchers and reserves will be announced Sunday), there is a question to be raised about what the Phillies can expect in the second half.

Because Sánchez has worked 97⅓ innings, two fewer than his total in the majors last season. He has added muscle to his 6-foot-6 frame and has gained strength to pitch deeper into games. The Phillies believe he can make his full complement of 30-plus starts.

“I hope so,” Thomson said. “And if we have to skip a start somewhere down the road, or two starts, that’s fine, too. We’re just going to take care of him. There’s no indication that we need to back off yet.”

There are ways to manage Sánchez’s workload. The Phillies have used a six-man rotation through the summer in each of the last two seasons, although their starting depth took a hit last week when Spencer Turnbull strained a muscle behind his right shoulder, an injury that will keep him out until at least August.

It’s a topic for after the All-Star break. Besides, it’s clear that Sánchez has earned a level of respect among his teammates. Acquired in a 2019 trade with the Rays, disregarded as a prospect, and called up 13 months ago out of desperation as much as anything, he took hold of a rotation spot last summer and worked to become of the best starters in the league over the last three months.

“He’s awesome,” Zack Wheeler said. “He’s locked in all the time. It’s really cool to see. He just has open ears. He’s always trying to get better, and he’s gotten better. It doesn’t always happen that way. I’m happy for him.”

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Imagine how happy they’ll be if one of the best stories on the team with the best record in baseball makes the All-Star team.

Sánchez would be ecstatic.

“It would mean a lot,” he said. “As I said in spring training, that was a goal that I set for myself. So if it happens, it happens, and if it doesn’t happen, then let’s just go on to win more games and help the team any way that I can.”