Phillies' surprise Cy Young candidate might just save their trade deadline

The Philadelphia Phillies took down the surging Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night behind another absolute gem from Cristopher Sánchez. The NL's foremost All-Star snub went all nine innings, allowing just four hits and one earned run. He gave up zero walks and rung up 12 strikeouts, his third double-digit strikeout game this season.

Since June 1, a span of seven starts, Sánchez ranks second in ERA (1.54), first in innings pitched (64.1) and first in fWAR (2.4), per MLB Network. He is one of the absolute best pitchers in MLB right now and, without question, a viable Cy Young candidate in the National League.

Now, will Sánchez actually win the Cy Young? Almost certainly not. He faces stiff competition, and there's too much politics for that award to end up with a relative no-name compared to his peers. Sánchez is great, but Paul Skenes is Paul Skenes. He has the entire country behind him. Zack Wheeler, Sánchez's better-known teammate, feels like Skenes' primary competition, even if Sánchez is operating on the same level right now.

That does not mean Sánchez's magical season will go unrecognized. It also does not mean the Phillies won't benefit immensely from his mastery down the stretch of this season.

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Phillies could solve biggest weakness without a trade due to Cristopher Sánchez

Philadelphia's primary operating goal at the trade deadline is, by all accounts, adding to the bullpen. Orion Kerkering is a solid late-relief weapon, but it thins out quickly after him. Matt Strahm has regressed from last season's All-Star heights and Jordan Romano, the Phils' splashy offseason addition, looks completely lost on the mound.

Much has been made of the Phillies' weak bullpen and its postseason implications. But folks might be underrating the value of Philadelphia's elite starting depth and what that could mean for the bullpen come October.

Teams generally only need three or four starters once the playoffs arrive. Philly has two stone-cold locks in Wheeler and Sánchez, both of whom feel like walking W's right now. Jesús Luzardo and Ranger Suárez are in the mix for that third spot, depending on your preferences. Luzardo's stuff probably plays better in a bullpen setting and Suárez has a strong postseason track record, so I'd lean in that direction personally.

Let's say Wheeler-Sánchez-Suárez is your three-man unit. There are few better. That allows Philadelphia to plug Luzardo, Aaron Nola and even their up-and-comings prospects — think Mick Abel, Andrew Painter, hell, first-round pick Gage Wood — into the bullpen. That is an infusion of experience and plain old stuff that very few bullpens receive by simple virtue of shortening the main rotation.

Phillies should still look for bullpen upgrades at the trade deadline

While Dave Dombrowski should be careful not to be too aggressive — I'm hesitant to ship Abel out unless the reliever coming back is a certified buzzsaw — the Phillies can't hoard prospects and expect to win in today's National League. The Dodgers never stop adding. The Cubs, Mets and Padres will all be active in the coming days. Philly needs to match that energy and commit to this short window with aging stars like Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and soon-to-be-free agent Kyle Schwarber.

If the Phillies plug Nola, Luzardo/Suárez and some of the Triple-A young guns into the bullpen and trade for a star reliever — Minnesota's Jhoan Durán, Cleveland's Emmanuel Clasé, Baltimore Félix Bautista, (sends a prayer to the heavens) the A's Mason Miller all come to a wishful man's mind — this team feels like a proper unit. The offense will come and go as it often does, but with Schwarber and Harper, there's enough experience and pop to win games if the opponents simply never score.