Sanchez Is Being Done Dirty By Lines Offered By Books

Phillies vs. Reds, 5:10 ET

There have been some very intriguing series this week. We have the freeway series over in Los Angeles between the Dodgers and the Angels (which, if the Angels win today, they will go 6-0 against their in-state rivals this season. We have the Cubs facing the Blue Jays, the Padres and Giants, Braves and Mets - always a good time, and the Red Sox take on the Astros in a series with a lot of playoff implications. The series I've liked best so far has been this one between the Phillies and Reds, this will be the second article I've written about the series, and I probably could've written one yesterday as well.

The Phillies are one of the best squads in the league and are maintaining their lead in the National League East. I feel like the bigger reason for their lead expanding is how poorly the Mets have played, moreso than how well the Phillies have done lately. Since the All-Star Break, the Phillies are 14-9. The Mets have been awful, going just 2-11 over their last 13 games, and the Phillies have been hot over their 10, going 7-3. Philly took the first game of this series with a 4-1 victory over the Reds. Today, they send out a stud pitcher to the hill with Cristopher Sanchez taking the ball. Sanchez's Cy Young chances increased yesterday with Paul Skenes' bad start. Sanchez is now 11-3 with a 2.36 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and has 151 strikeouts. All numbers 13th or better in the league. He has allowed four earned runs in just two starts this season. He has allowed three or more earned runs in just four starts this season. Overall, since June, he has exactly three starts out of 12 that saw him allow two or more runs. In other words, Sanchez has been dirty. The Reds hitters have done well against him in the past, going 10-for-27 against him, but only one of those hits has been for extra bases. 

The Reds are in the middle of the playoff hunt, which is not a sentence that most people would've predicted this season. I feel like the development of this team has gone faster than most, and to the front office's credit, they have found creative ways to make the club better without seemingly depleting the farm system. Also thanks to the Mets stumble, the Reds are just three games behind New York for the season and not too terribly far behind the Padres or Cubs for the top spots in the Wild Card race. They are 13-11 since the break, so it isn't like they are setting the world on fire, but they're above the .500 mark in the second half, which is better than a lot of teams. The biggest boost to them is that Hunter Greene will take the mound today. He returns from injury after having a spectacular season derailed. His last start was June 3rd, and his numbers for the season are 4-3 with a 2.72 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, and 73 strikeouts in just under 60 innings. I am not 100% sure what to expect out of Greene today, but five innings seems a bit high to me. The Reds bullpen is middle-of-the-pack so it might not be a problem. Greene has allowed 16 hits in 52 at-bats to Phillies hitters.

This is a game that, normally, I think we could play the under and not look back. However, I do have some concern with the success both offenses have had against their opponents. Instead of taking the under, I'm going to take a stance on the side. Sanchez is almost being disrespected by the line offered by the books. He has been one of the best teams in baseball and I get that he has to face Greene today, but this is a guy who hasn't thrown in a game for two months. Back the Phillies here and take the gift.  

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