A true ace shines in series finale victory over Cardinals

Aaron Nola and Bryce Harper, who have dominated the Cardinals so far in their career, led the Phillies to victory in the Sunday matinee. Harper hit his 12th career home run against St. Louis, a second-deck long-shot in the first. He ended the day 3-for-3 with a home run, double and single.

Nola threw what will go down as one of the best starts in his career. Through nine innings, Nola struck out 10 and walked none. All of this was without feel for one of the best pitches he has: his sinker. After today, Nola has a 2.19 ERA on the young season. Today’s performance should put a wrench in the ace debate.

The homestand continues on Monday against the San Francisco Giants. Former Phillies manager Gabe Kapler is set to return for the first time since being let go by the team after the 2019 season.

Top Plays

• Bryce Harper got the Phillies on the board in the first with a home run that was out as soon as the ball hit the barrel. He has a history of hitting bombs with a bad back, which is good news for the Phillies.

It was made in a bomb factory – it’s a ? pic.twitter.com/EVeyndI1cb

— Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) April 18, 2021

• J.T. Realmuto had a chance to drive in a run with Rhys Hoskins on second and Harper on first following an error and walk. Realmuto would be credited with a base hit, but the ball hit Hoskins. It was a weird way to end the bottom of the third.
• With the bases load, Alec Bohm hit a sacrifice fly to left-center field to double the lead. Didi Gregorius had a chance to add on with Harper and Realmuto in scoring position, but he popped up to end the inning. It was Bohm’s 26th career RBI with runners in scoring position.

Shibe Vintage Sports Starting Pitching Performance

John Gant: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 5 BB, 5 SO, 88 pitches

Gant nearly doubled his walk total on the season today, which is never a good sign. He did strand two runners in each of his final three innings, which is key since the Phillies offense is at its best when it can consistently find a way to drive home runners in scoring position.

Aaron Nola: 9 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 SO, 109 pitches

Phillies Nuggets Player of the Game: Aaron Nola

Nola came into this game with a 2.35 career ERA against the Cardinals in six games. One of his best starts earlier in his career came in St. Louis where he threw seven scoreless and struck out seven in 2016. Today, Nola got ahead of 17 of the 30 batters he faced and struck out 10 and walked none. He had never pitched into the ninth inning before in his career and because of the seven-inning doubleheader rule, Nola had two complete games to his credit. This is his first true complete-game shutout. Almost a fifth of the pitches he threw generated a swing-and-miss.

Ticket IQ Next Game

• Monday, April 19 vs. San Francisco Giants at 7:05 pm ET
• Citizens Bank Park
• TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
• Radio: 94 WIP

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