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
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.
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