Cristopher Sánchez has been arguably the best pitcher in baseball this year, and now he owns a Philadelphia Phillies record that stood for 115 years.
Sánchez tossed his 42nd consecutive shutout inning Wednesday, May 27 at San Diego, breaking Grover Cleveland Alexander's mark that had stood since 1911. He eclipsed Alexander's record with his fourth shutout inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park.
By the time his afternoon was done in the Phillies' 3-0 win, Sanchez pitched seven shutout innings, stretching his streak to 44 2/3 innings and potentially getting into the conversation for the longest of all time: Orel Hershiser's 59-inning scoreless run at the end of the 1988 season.
Sánchez and Hershiser are also the only pitchers since 1913 to pitch a scoreless calendar month of at least 30 innings, with Hershiser pulling it off in September 1988.
Given the Phillies' tradition-rich history - they date to 1883 - and the Hall of Famers who have graced their mound, claiming the club record is no small feat. Yet Sanchez has been nearly untouchable: In his five starts since last giving up a run to the San Francisco Giants on April 30, he struck out 45 and walked three, and posted a 0.74 WHIP.
Sánchez, 29, kept up that epic run against San Diego, striking out nine in seven innings and walking none, exiting with a 2-0 lead. His season ERA is down to 1.47.
Sánchez has tossed one shutout in his streak, a stark difference from Alexander's streak in 1911 - he tossed four consecutive shutouts. In the century-plus since, lefty Cliff Lee has come closest to Alexander's club mark, firing 34 consecutive scoreless innings in 2011.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cristopher Sanchez scoreless streak breaks 115-year Phillies record