Washington at Philadelphia

We had Washington on the moneyline last night, and it cashed the hard way: tied 3-3 after nine, tied again 4-4 after ten, and then six Nationals runs in the eleventh for a 10-4 final that only looks lopsided on the scoreboard. Andrew Painter was solid before he left, four innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts and a 2-1 lead, pulled for hamstring tightness rather than for anything Washington did to him. What matters tonight is what came after. Philadelphia ran eight relievers through eleven innings, Jhoan Duran and José Alvarado among them, and a staff that far into its bullpen doesn’t get whole again overnight. That is exactly why Cristopher Sánchez is the arm you want going in this spot. He is 14-4 with a 2.61 ERA and 168 strikeouts, and he opened August with six shutout innings and eleven strikeouts against Baltimore. Length is his game, and length is what Philadelphia needs. Miles Mikolas counters at 3-8 with a 5.67 ERA, offering Washington no such cover. Philadelphia is the right side tonight.