Although Ranger Suárez’s streak of nine consecutive wins ended on Sunday, it was an impressive feat that put him in elite company in Phillies lore. Here are 10 things to know about the burst to open the season by Suárez, who will make his next start on Saturday at home against St. Louis.
10. 9-0 in a hurry
Suárez’s 9-0 start in the first 50 games was the best in team history without a loss. Tommy Greene started 7-0 in 1993 (going to 8-0 in game No. 53). Omar Daal was 6-0 in 2001, Aaron Nola was 5-0 in 2019. Suárez’s 1.36 ERA was the best of the group. Nola’s 4.53 was the worst. After giving up five runs in six innings in Colorado, Suárez is still a very respectable 9-1, 1.75.
9. Grover and out
Grover Alexander had five seasons in 1911-17 with 10 wins within the Phillies’ first 50 games, but that was a time known as the dead-ball era, when hitting 20 home runs was like hitting 60 today.
8. Complete efforts
More recently, Steve Carlton started 10-2 in 1980 on the way to his third of four Cy Young Awards. Robin Roberts was 10-4 in 1953 when he started 15 times in the Phillies’ first 50 games. He pitched a complete game every time and had 33 complete games that season. Suárez has one complete game this season. The major-league leaders last season were Sandy Alcantara and Jordan Lyles with three apiece.
7. Super Steve
Carlton’s famous 1972 season, when he went 27-10 with a 1.97 ERA, is widely considered the greatest single-season pitching performance. He was 7-6 with a 2.83 ERA in the team’s first 50 games. The Phillies won 59 games that year. Lefty won 27 of them.
6. Elite company
San Diego’s Andy Hawkins is the only pitcher since 1946 to start a season 10-0 in his team’s first 50 games, during the 1985 season. Among those who started 9-0 in the first 50 games are Roger Clemens twice, Don Newcomb, Jake Arrieta, and Suárez. Additionally, Suárez was the first starting pitcher with a 9-0 record and an ERA under 1.50 since Hall of Famer Juan Marichal in 1966.
5. Streakers
Suárez was the first Phillies pitcher to win nine consecutive starts since Roberts in 1952. No Phillies pitcher has ever won 10 consecutive starts.
4. Cy Young hopes
Suárez opened at odds of 150-1 at BetMGM to win the Cy Young. Entering this week, he was around 4-1 odds — +450 to be precise.
3. Painful memory
Give Suárez high marks for his terrific start since his 2023 season ended with a mediocre outing in Game 7 of the NLCS. He gave up three runs to the Diamondbacks and probably should have been removed before giving up an RBI single to Corbin Carroll in the fifth inning. That turned out to be the winning run. But the Phillies’ anemic offense was more to blame for losing the last two games of that series than Suárez’s performance in Game 7.
2. Worth noting
It should be noted that Suárez has made two starts this season against teams that entered this week with a winning record. They were against Atlanta on March 31 and San Francisco on May 4.
1. Facing the Cards
Suárez’s only career appearance against the Cardinals came on Sept. 16 last season when he gave up one run in six innings to improve to 3-6 with a 3.80 ERA. When he sees the Cards on Saturday, he will be 9-1, 1.75 and looking to start another streak.
Starting hot
A look at some of the best starts by Phillies starting pitchers:
Grover Alexander, 1911
Started: 12-2, 0.49 ERA
Rest of season: 16-11, 3.71
Did you know? One of his early wins was when he tossed eight innings of no-hit ball — in relief! Not bad for a rookie. ERA did not become an official statistic until 1913, so take that 0.49 mark with a grain of salt.
Alexander, 1916
Started: 13-3, 1.33 ERA
Rest of season: 20-9, 1.66 ERA
Did you know? Alexander had six seasons when he had at least 10 wins through 54 games. His 13 in 1916 is a team record. The most for any major leaguer since World War II is 14 by the White Sox’ Wilbur Wood in 1973.
Jack Sanford, 1957
Started: 8-1, 2.43 ERA
Rest of season: 11-7, 3.35
Did you know? Sanford was 28 years old in his first full major-league season. He remains the only Phillies pitcher ever to win rookie of the year.
Steve Carlton, 1972
Started: 7-6, 2.60 ERA
Rest of season: 20-4, 1.64 ERA
Did you know? Not exactly a great start, but when talking about legendary Phillies pitching seasons, Carlton in 1972 has to be included. Carlton pitched complete games in each of his final eight starts, a remarkable display of durability.
Carlton, 1980
Started: 11-2, 1.78 ERA
Rest of season: 13-7, 3.16 ERA
Did you know? Carlton won the Cy Young Award and finished fifth in the voting for NL MVP. He then went 2-0 in the World Series as the Phillies won the championship for the first time in their then-97 years of existence.
Tommy Greene, 1993
Started: 8-0, 1.87 ERA
Rest of season: 8-4, 4.49 ERA
Did you know? Greene finished sixth in Cy Young voting in 1993, but injuries derailed his career and he pitched in just 20 games after ‘93 before retiring in 1997.
Ranger Suárez, 2024
Started: 9-1, 1.75 ERA
Rest of season: Remains to be seen.
Did you know? Suárez had 29 wins total in his first six seasons.
Notes: Starts are through the Phillies’ 54th game in each particular season, which is when Suárez’s most recent start occurred.
Sources: Inquirer research and Baseball-Reference.com
