Kyle Schwarber Says the Phillies Are 'Fighting' Through a 9-Game Skid That Won't End

The Philadelphia Phillies lost again Thursday night, falling to the Chicago Cubs 8-7 in a gut-punch that extended their losing streak to nine straight games. It matches the longest skid the franchise has suffered since 2018. But here's what's eating at you if you're a Phillies fan: they're close. This loss was by only one run, their first single-digit defeat during this brutal stretch. The problem? "Close" doesn't get you wins.

Schwarber Searching for Silver Linings

Kyle Schwarber stood in the clubhouse after the loss and tried to find something, anything, to hold onto. "I feel like that's probably our brand of baseball right there," he said. "That's the way that we should keep playing, right? Guys are going to be grinding, and guys are figuring it out. But we felt like we kept energy today. We kept fighting through it."

The thing is, Schwarber isn't wrong about the effort. The Phillies clawed back from an early 6-2 hole. Brandon Marsh was explosive, hammering two home runs among three hits, driving in three runs and drawing a walk. The bench came alive in the late innings: Edmundo Sosa tied it with an eighth-inning RBI single, then Adolis Garcia answered the Cubs going back ahead with a ninth-inning homer of his own. The rally was there. The fight was there. But the finish wasn't.

Sanchez Struggles, Phillies Pay the Price

The damage started early. Phillies ace Cristopher Sanchez had one of those rough outings that haunts you. He gave up six runs over 5⅓ innings and served up 12 hits, matching a career high. "Overall bad outing," Sanchez said through the team's interpreter. "I think that my only good pitch today was the changeup. And I missed too many spots with the sinker."

When your ace can't give you depth and your lineup has to claw back from early deficits just to stay in games, nine straight losses start to feel inevitable. The Phillies are out there fighting, no question. But fighting and winning aren't the same thing right now, and that's what's got to change.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.