Sánchez had been nearly untouchable most of the year, but he'd also just come out of a rough patch before the All-Star break where he got tagged for 9 earned runs in 3.1 innings in one start. Sheehan, meanwhile, has seen his fastball sit at 91-94 mph instead of the mid-90s he ran with a year ago, and that dip in stuff was the swing factor everyone in the building was watching for.
Philadelphia grabbed control early with a 4-run 2nd and never really let go, adding another 4-spot in the 6th to push the lead to a comfortable margin. The Dodgers chipped away — a run in the 4th, 2 more in the 6th, 1 in the 7th — before mounting a real threat with a 3-run 9th that got the tying run into the on-deck circle before Philly closed it out.
Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper have carried this Phillies lineup all year, combining for 50-plus home runs before the break, and Philadelphia has gone 45-24 in its recent stretch under interim manager Don Mattingly. That kind of offensive depth is exactly why a shorthanded Dodgers pen was living dangerously all night, regardless of what the final line score ended up showing.
The Dodgers still own the better overall record at 63-38 and clearly have the talent to make this a longer series fight, but the pitching depth gap showed up in a big way Monday. Philadelphia gets to carry the momentum from a signature win into the rest of this set.