March 23, 2026
Jonathan Dyer/Imagn Images
Cris Sánchez will anchor the Phillies top notch starting pitching staff this season.
The Phillies' rotation is actually a bit underrated.
Last season, they had three pitchers receive Cy Young votes — and that's not even including top of the rotation lefty Ranger Suárez, who left in free agency. The recently extended Cris Sánchez finished in second place behind Paul Skenes in 2025, with Jesus Luzardo finishing seventh and Zack Wheeler (who missed the last month plus of the year) ninth.
Seemingly every season since 2018, the Phillies have had multiple pitchers in the Cy Young conversation. In the last eight seasons, the Phillies have seen 12 pitchers receive votes as the best pitchers in the National League. Five times in that span they had a pitcher finish in the top five, and three times they had the Cy Young runner up in the rotation.
| Season | Pitcher | WAR | Finish |
| 2018 | Aaron Nola | 9.7 | 3rd |
| 2021 | Zack Wheeler | 7.5 | 2nd |
| 2022 | Aaron Nola | 5.7 | 4th |
| 2024 | Zack Wheeler | 6.1 | 2nd |
| 2025 | Cris Sánchez | 8.0 | 2nd |
Notice the WAR (wins above replacement) of Nola in 2018 and Sánchez last year. Those are two of the only four instances of an NL pitcher amassing a WAR of 8.0 or higher in the last 10 years (the other two were Jacob DeGrom in 2018 and Sandy Alcantara in 2022). Neither performance earned a Cy Young award.
No Phillie has won Cy Young honors since Roy Halladay did in 2010. Sánchez had a legitimate case last season, and in most years he would have run away with the award.
A first-time Cy Young Award winner will be crowned out of the National League tonight! 🏆
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) November 12, 2025
Who do you have winning: Cristopher Sánchez, Paul Skenes or Yoshinobu Yamamoto? pic.twitter.com/DwLCX1ujh9
Once Wheeler returns to the mound, which is expected sometime in early or mid April (he's a little behind, but healthy, as he ramps up after getting offseason Thoracic Outlet Surgery), the Phillies will have four pitchers who have received Cy Young votes in the last two seasons. Their fifth starter is top pitching prospect Andrew Painter, who the team thinks has potential to join them.
Over the last few seasons, the Phillies' winning recipe was based on their dominant starting pitching. No team had more quality starts — the Phils' 84 of them was 52% of the entire season, no other team was higher than 44%. No pitching staff pitched more innings or threw more pitches. No starting five had more strikeouts or strikeouts per nine innings and just the Rangers had a better ERA.
The trickle-down effect is massive, and it's why the Phillies have increased their wins every year since the pandemic. The bullpen needs less depth, and is under less pressure and is also well rested. The offense can be bailed out when it's inconsistent (which it often is).
The Phillies are doubling and tripling down on this strength as they reached extensions with both Sánchez and Luzardo this month. They also gave Nola and Wheeler massive paydays over the last few offseasons.
Fangraphs expects the Phillies to have the best starting five in the National League again, trailing only the AL's Tigers and Red Sox. On a team that forged its identity back in 2022 as a clutch home run-mashing powerhouse during their failed World Series run, the evolution of the mostly retained core roster has turned into a team defined by great pitching.
The front office and scouts deserve loads of credit. While they may have struggled to develop offensive stars, they have found absolute gems in Sánchez, Nola and the departed Suárez. They pounced on Wheeler when he was no better than an average starter with the Mets and he's earned Cy Young votes in five of his six Phillies seasons. They got a ton of value when they traded with the Marlins for Luzardo last offseason.
And the Phillies, thus far, deserve the benefit of the doubt with Painter finally making the leap to the majors. Will last year's first rounder Gage Wood be next?
If the Phillies rotation is mostly healthy in 2026 they'll win 90 games again. And if they win 90 games again, you never know what happens in October. This is what the Phillies are, and they've forged a clear path forward. Pitch well, and hope the offense follows.
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