PHOENIX -- The Phillies have displayed flashes of dominance at times on the mound this season. They just haven't shown it enough times.
On Monday, Phillies' pitchers combined to throw their Major League leading ninth shutout of the season in the 8-0 victory against the D-backs at Chase Field.
They threw seven shutouts during the entire 2015 season.
"For the first six or seven weeks of the season, after our 0-4 start, our pitching was just fantastic. Everybody did their job and made their pitches and for whatever reason, our pitching was really outstanding," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "When they are good, they are good. The whole name of the game is consistency. Over 162 games, the best teams end up on top because they have their ups and downs, but over the long haul, the better teams play better, hit better and pitch better."
What's more, the nine shutouts are the club's most through their its 78 games since 2011 when the staff had nine shutouts in the first 67 games. That season, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt threw 21 shutouts and the Phillies won a franchise-record 102 games.