Duo of Philadelphia Phillies Pitchers Land on Top-10 Starters List
The Philadelphia Phillies have two of the top-five starting pitchers in baseball, according to MLB Network.
Video Transcript
The Philadelphia Phillies had one of the best rotations in all of baseball last season, and that was reflected in MLB Network's re- recent top ten pitchers heading into the two thousand and twenty-six season, with the Phillies actually having two players in the top five.
First up is Zach Wheeler, and yeah, Zach Wheeler currently is injured.
He was shut down early last season.
But when Zach Wheeler's on the mound, we know how good of a pitcher he is.
In twenty-three starts last season, he was on track for a career-best year.
He had a two point seven one ERA, zero point nine four WHIP, and a strikeout rate of thirty-three percent.
So it was definitely disappointing that Wheeler's season ended early, and there definitely are some questions about what it'll look like when he does return to the mound.
But I think it's safe to say that when Wheeler is pitching, he's one of the best pitchers in all of baseball and definitely deserves to be on this list.
The next one is Christopher Sanchez, who came in at number five on MLB Network's list, and Christopher Sanchez really has taken many strides over the last three seasons, especially, and at age twenty-nine, he's really entering the prime of his career, which is really exciting for the Phillies organization and their fans.
Last season, the twenty-nine-year-old had a two point five zero ERA and a one point zero six width- WHIP, both of which were career bests for him.
And I think the biggest area of growth that Sanchez had from two thousand and twenty-four to two thousand and twenty-five was generating more swing and miss and strikeout rate- and strikeouts as well.
In two thousand and twenty-four, he had a strikeout rate of twenty-eight percent, but in, in two thousand and twenty-five, that took a massive jump, which definitely helped him out.
If Sanchez continues this progression, I think it's a real possibility that next season at this time, we're looking at him and considering him not just a top five pitcher in baseball, but possibly even a top three.
