Phillies Rally Late In Home Opener To Win Thriller Over Rockies
A sellout crowd at Citizens Bank Park cheered as PA announcer Dan Baker opened up the season with his signature call for the 2025 Philadelphia Phillies.
The Phillies found themselves in another 1-0 hole after the middle innings. However, they pulled off a rally with striking similarities to their offensive explosion on Opening Day against the Washington Nationals.
Phillies Home Opener
German Marquez threw six shutout innings to quiet the crowd of 44,595 fans. The Phillies managed only four hits against the long-time Colorado Rockies righty.
Their offensive surge didn’t come until after the suddenly infamous shadows drifted away from home plate in the later hours of the ballgame. The Phillies smacked around another bullpen.
Bryson Stott pulled a two-out double to right field in the seventh and forced Rob Thomson to use Trea Turner as a pinch hitter. The everyday shortstop is fighting a back injury, but he worked a walk to bring his replacement to the plate.
Edmundo Sosa ripped a two-run double to right center to give the Phillies a lead they wouldn’t give back. Suddenly, everybody started to hit.
Kyle Schwarber extended the lead to 4-1. Max Kepler and Nick Castellanos hit solo shots in the bottom of the eighth, and the bullpen cruised in 3 ⅔ shutout innings for a 6-1 victory.
Cristopher Sanchez
Rob Thomson spoke about starting pitcher Cristopher Sanchez before the Phillies took the field for the home opener. The 28-year-old lefty appears poised for another step forward in 2025.
“He’s now at a point where he’s the combination of power and command, much like Wheeler in a sense. When you have that, you’re in pretty good shape. Plus, he’s got a swing and miss pitch with the changeup. The slider’s really come along.” -Rob Thomson
Sanchez struck out seven over 5 ⅓ innings. Three Rockies whiffed at his changeup for strike three. Four went down looking as his hard sinker touched the corners of the strike zone.
His last hitter of the afternoon did the only damage. Hunter Goodman smoked a solo shot into the newly-renovated bullpen.
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Sanchez focused heavily after the game on correcting the mistakes he made. However, he picked up where he left off in his 2024 breakout season with a strong performance in a home game at Citizens Bank Park.
The Phillies improved to 3-1 with a win in their home opener. They will return to the diamond on Wednesday night. Zack Wheeler will take the hill for a 6:45pm first pitch.
Bud Black and the Rockies will counter with 31-year-old left-hander Kyle Freeland.
