Struggling Padres face tall task vs. Cristopher Sanchez, Phillies

Cristopher Sanchez is in the midst of a historic stretch on the mound -- something the San Diego Padres know all too well.

Sanchez looks to continue his franchise-record scoreless streak on Wednesday when the host Philadelphia Phillies play the second contest of their three-game series with the scuffling Padres.

In five starts last month, Sanchez (6-2, 1.47 ERA) did not allow a run over 39 innings. In all, he carries a 44 2/3-inning scoreless streak into this outing -- a stretch that is the top mark in Phillies lore and also ranks as the seventh-longest streak in the Live Ball Era (since 1920).

Sanchez closed out his May with a dominant effort against the Padres. The Dominican left-hander struck out nine over seven frames in San Diego last week, allowing just six hits without a walk.

In fact, Sanchez walked only three while striking out 45 last month.

"You just don't expect him to give up any runs," Philadelphia interim manager Don Mattingly said after Sanchez silenced the Padres. "He's been amazing from the standpoint of, it just seems like every time out, no matter what team or who it is, he just kind of keeps going."

The major league record for consecutive scoreless innings is Orel Hershiser, who threw 59 straight scoreless frames for the 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers.

"It feels really good to do that," Sanchez said of his dominant stretch. "But we are still focused on performing every five days. This is not over yet."

After sweeping three games in San Diego last week, the Phillies opened their current series with the Padres with a 3-2 triumph on Tuesday. Bryce Harper homered and Brandon Marsh collected four hits, while Aaron Nola and four relievers took care of business on the mound.

Still, the Phillies' offense -- which has scored four runs or fewer in 12 straight games -- remains a concern.

"I don't think over the course of a season it's super-sustainable," Harper said. "Obviously, we've done a good job as of late. Our starting pitching has been lights-out and the bullpen has been very good. Obviously, as an offense, we want to score more runs and we need to score more runs. We've got to keep plugging and do the best we can. We've got to score more runs and win games bigger than one, two or three or runs."

Gavin Sheets homered for the Padres, who have lost seven of their last eight games. Fernando Tatis Jr. recorded three hits but also made a notable baserunning mistake late in the game.

"They kind of outplayed us, just a hair today," San Diego manager Craig Stammen said. "One-run win by them. We didn't do the little things to help us stay in the game and win that one."

The Padres will look to bounce back Wednesday as they give the nod to Walker Buehler (3-3, 4.88), who spent a portion of last season with the Phillies. The veteran right-hander opposed Sanchez in San Diego last week and gave up two runs and three hits without a walk in 5 1/3 innings.

Buehler has made six career appearances against the Phillies, going 1-2 with a 4.66 ERA. Sanchez, meanwhile, is 4-1 with a 1.62 ERA versus the Padres.

--Field Level Media