Handing Out Superlatives to Phillies Players for Month of May

Several Philadelphia Phillies players stood out in May earning superlatives for their performance.

May 5, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sanchez (61) reacts after an Athletics strikeout to end the eighth inning at Citizens Bank Park. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The month of May was a very successful one for the Philadelphia Phillies, who went 18-10 to overcome a disastrous start to the campaign in March and April.

Clawing their way back to the .500 mark and into the playoff picture in the National League was a success. Interim manager Don Mattingly has seemingly helped light a fire back under his players, who responded by winning the first six series he was at the helm for.

They came back down to Earth near the end of the month, losing three out of four series. But that wasn’t enough to mar what was a successful stretch of the season, with several players stepping up their performance.

Who raised their game the most? Here are three players who earned superlatives for how well they played in May.

MVP: Cristopher Sanchez

May 27, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sanchez (61) delivers during the fourth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Sanchez set a team record for the most consecutive scoreless innings. | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

There were a few worthy candidates to take home the MVP award in May. Outfielder Brandon Marsh continues producing at a high level. First baseman Bryce Harper played well, and designated hitter Kyle Schwarber had a ridiculous power surge.

However, none of them made history like Cristopher Sanchez did, which earns him the MVP award for the month. He made five starts last month, going 4-0 while not allowing a single run across 39 innings of work, pushing his scoreless streak to 44.2 innings.

Sanchez struck out 45 batters and walked only three, allowing 25 hits as well. It was a truly dominant performance, setting up one of the toughest National League Pitcher of the Month award races ever against Jacob Misiorowski of the Milwaukee Brewers.

They are going to be neck-and-neck in the NL Cy Young Award race as well, along with Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Cy Young: Zack Wheeler

May 29, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) throws against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the fifth inning at Dodger Stadium. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Sanchez would have won this award, but recognizing another teammate who performed at a high level was necessary. Zack Wheeler has picked up right where he left off in 2025 when his campaign was cut short because of a blood clot.

He made six stars in June, going 4-1 with a 2.06 ERA and 0.89 WHIP. 34 strikeouts were recorded compared to six walks, still finding success despite not blowing away hitters with elite strikeout stuff.

Out of the nine earned runs and five home runs he allowed in May, four apiece came in his latest start against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Before that, he allowed five earned runs in 32.2 innings pitched.

Most Improved Player: Alec Bohm

May 20, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies infielder Alec Bohm (28) rounds the bases after hitting a home run against the Cincinnati Reds in the sixth inning at Citizens Bank Park. | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

There may not have been a player in the MLB who struggled out of the gate as much as Alec Bohm. He was making the kind of history no player wants to be tied to with how underwhelming his production was.

Things didn’t start much better in May when he went 4-for-20 in his first six games of the month. For the first time in his career, he was lifted from a game that wasn’t a blowout for a pinch hitter on May 6 against the Athletics. Bohm was out of the lineup for the next two games, and the rest did him some good.

Over his last 20 games played in May, Bohm produced a .297/.350/.554 slash line with five home runs, four doubles and nine RBI. He entered May with a .151/.218/.208 slash line and now has a .210/.271/.335 slash line on the year.

Certainly below expectations overall, but much better than where things were a few weeks ago.