PHILADELPHIA — Aaron Nola will be the first to admit that he hasn’t been the co-ace the Phillies are paying him to be this season.
But on Monday night, he did what aces do.
Nola did not allow a run over six innings, marking just his second scoreless outing of the season — and first since May 3. Perhaps most impressive, though, is what Nola did in the sixth inning.
Clinging to a one-run lead, manager Rob Thomson sent Nola back out for the sixth to face the heart of the Mets’ order: Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo.
It was a bold move for a few reasons. For starters, Nola entered the night with a 6.78 ERA in 13 starts this season, including an 8.38 ERA in four outings since his three-month IL stint.
Beyond that, including their postseason showdowns, Soto entered the night with a .446 on-base percentage and a .983 OPS against Nola. Alonso came in hitting .327 (18-for-55) with six home runs against Nola, including the postseason. Those six homers are tied for the most Nola has given up to any player.
So, how did Nola navigate his way through the sixth?
He struck out Soto on a 1-2 cutter — the only cutter Nola threw all game. Then, after getting Alonso to fly out, Nola struck out Nimmo with a 92.5 mph sinker — the fastest sinker he threw all game.
“They’re good hitters,” Nola said. “I’ve faced them a lot. Just to get those guys out, especially to get Soto, was big.”
So, about that cutter against Soto …
“Just something he hadn’t seen before,” Nola said.
Added catcher J.T. Realmuto: “He’s that type of hitter, where sometimes you have to think outside the box a little bit. He hadn’t seen one yet, so he wasn’t going to be looking for it.”
Soto swung and missed at the offering, then took an extra glance toward the mound as he walked back to the third-base dugout seemingly in disbelief.
Realmuto trusted Nola to execute the seldom-used offering — and Nola trusted Realmuto’s surprising pitch call.
But does striking out one of the best hitters in baseball feel even more rewarding when it comes on a risky call?
“Oh yeah, definitely,” Realmuto said. “When I called it, I took kind of a deep breath, because if it doesn’t work out, then you really kick yourself for it. But Aaron threw a great pitch there, and it worked out for us.”
Two batters later, Nola was strolling back to his own dugout to a standing ovation from a sellout crowd.
“I haven’t had a game like this in quite some time,” Nola said. “But I was able to put the team in a position to win and throw some zeros in there, and the bullpen came in and did their job.”
David Robertson struck out two in 1-2-3 seventh and Matt Strahm pitched around a walk in the eighth. Jhoan Duran allowed the Mets to put runners on second and third with only one out, but he struck out Jeff McNeil and Francisco Alvarez back to back to seal the one-run victory.
It was the Phillies’ first 1-0 win over the Mets at Citizens Bank Park since Sept. 13, 2009, in Game 2 of a day-night doubleheader. Pedro Martinez tossed eight scoreless for the win, while Chase Utley drove in Jimmy Rollins for the game’s only run.
This time around, it was another cornerstone of the franchise making the biggest difference.
“That was really encouraging just seeing him pitch the way he has for so many years here,” Realmuto said of Nola. “This time of year, we all know how important starting pitching is, and him being able to throw up zeros against a really good lineup like that is definitely encouraging to see.”