Phillies' most improved pitcher tasked with helping save their season Sunday

You might suppose that nothing could be more thrilling for Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sanchez than to start Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the Mets Sunday. Especially considering that, at this time a year ago, the organization still didn’t know quite what to make of him.

You’d be incorrect.

Don’t get the wrong impression. The 27-year-old is all in on facing Mets right-hander Luis Severino in the 4:08 p.m. matchup. But while it can be hard to remember, especially at this time of year, there are some things in this life more important than a baseball game. Like, say, having a baby. Which his wife, Kaimary Perez, did on Monday.

“I think there's nothing that beats getting home to my kid right now,” he said through translator Diego D’Aniello in the Citizens Bank Park interview room Saturday before the first pitch of Game 1. “I'm just spending time with him, holding him every 5 minutes. Just all around, being all over him. That's just something I can't describe right now.”

Baby Cris will someday hear the story of how his dad went out and pitched just six days after welcoming him into the world. The details remain to be written, but Pops is committed to crafting a storybook tale. Even moreso after the Phillies were upset, 6-2, in the opener and now face an uphill battle to advance in the best-of-five series.

To that end, he’s trying to keep everything as normal as possible in what has been an absurdly abnormal week.

He hasn’t pitched since September 25 against the Cubs. The baby was born September 29 Somehow, though, the pieces fell neatly into place.  

“It all happened in perfect timing,” Sanchez (11-9, 3.32 in the regular season) said. “I was able to go to the hospital and meet my kid, my wife, and just spend two days with them at the hospital. All normal to me. The next day I just came (to The Bank), did my throwing program, had a bullpen session, and it's all been just regular for me. Luckily.”

The reason Sanchez is starting Game 2 ahead of veteran Aaron Nola, who will go Game 3, has been well-documented. His earned run average at home this season was 2.21, fifth best in baseball. His 5.02 ERA on the road was fifth worst.

After a year in which he signed a 4-year, $22.5 million contract extension, was named NL Pitcher of the Month for June, made his first All-Star team and was with his wife when she had their baby there’s no reason for him to doubt that, in the words of the Desiderata, the universe is unfolding exactly as it should.

Severino, in the meantime, allows the Mets to restore some semblance of order to a rotation that was thrown out of whack by a makeup doubleheader at Atlanta on Monday followed by three wild card games in Milwaukee on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said he thought Severino (11-7, 3.91) showed some signs of fatigue late in the season. The 30-year-old righthander shrugged it off.

“I think in October everybody is tired,” he said in the interview room. “So it's nothing new. Right now I feel really good. A couple more starts is not going to be a huge deal. The velocity is there, the movement is still there. For some reason I keep having these weird innings that get me through a hundred-and-something pitches. But I feel good.”

It can only help that he’ll now be pitching to try to give his team a commanding 2-0 lead.

“I think at the end, it's not about who's the best team.” He continued. “Whatever team is (hot) in the moment. I think right now we are in that moment. We won a game nobody thought was going to win it (to advance). I would say we have a chip on our shoulder. We are going to go out there and fight until the end. We were not the favorite to make the playoffs, and we were not the favorite to win everything.

“We know that. We’re going to go compete every day.”

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