Phillies fall 5-2 to Braves as Sánchez, Bohm can't finish it
Cristopher Sánchez and Alec Bohm both delivered, but Philadelphia dropped the series opener 5-2 to Atlanta, and the Braves now hold a 4-game NL East lead with three more meetings this week.
Sánchez, Bohm not enough in the opener
The Phillies lost the first of four straight against Atlanta at Citizens Bank Park, falling 2-5. Cristopher Sánchez went 6.0 innings and struck out 5, but allowed 3 earned runs on 5 hits and 3 walks, and the bullpen couldn't hold the line from there.
Braves2-5Alec Bohm did what he could, going 2-for-4 with a double and a home run and driving in both Philadelphia runs. It matched the club's output for the night, but Atlanta's 5 were enough to take game one of the series.
The loss drops Philadelphia to 3-2 over its last five games after a three-game winning streak against the Angels and Diamondbacks. The Braves, per @mlbbowman, now lead the NL East by 4 games entering this stretch — with 4 in Philly, 3 against Tampa Bay, another 3 in Philadelphia and then 3 at Wrigley still to come.
Still clear for a wild card, if not the division
At 79-62, Philadelphia sits second in the NL Wild Card table, 5.0 games clear of the cut line held by San Diego. Chicago is the only club ahead of them for wild card position, at +5.5.
The margin for error is real: San Diego's elimination number sits at 12, Arizona's at 11 — both closer to being shut out of the race than the Phillies are to losing their spot. Miami (elim 8) and St. Louis (elim 4) are further gone still.
None of that touches the division, where Atlanta's 4-game cushion is the more urgent number this week. But the wild card math is the safety net underneath this series, and right now it's a comfortable one.
Upcoming
The Phillies host the Braves again tonight, with Zack Wheeler (11-5, 3.31 ERA) opposing Martín Pérez (8-8, 3.05 ERA). Wheeler was sharp his last time out, working 6.0 innings with 6 strikeouts and just 1 earned run allowed against the Angels; Pérez went 5.2 innings against Colorado his last start, allowing 1 earned run and striking out 6 of his own.
It's a strong pitching matchup on paper, and neither starter has been giving up much lately — which lines up with a game that projects as middling on total runs.
The market has Philadelphia favored at home, which tracks with Wheeler's form and the crowd behind him. For the number to hold, the Phillies need more than Saturday's two runs — Bohm's swing can't be the whole offense again if they're going to even this series before it moves to Sunday.