Phillies Top Ten Trades, Signings, and Roster Moves of 2016
By John Town
No. 2: Putting Aaron Nola on the Disabled List
Aaron Nola looked like a true ace through the first two months of the season. In 11 starts, he had a 2.88 ERA, 9.50 K/9, and 1.63 BB/9 over 72 innings. He was easily an All-Star candidate for the Phillies as he headlined what was at the time an effective rotation.
Then Nola broke and he struggled immensely in his last eight starts of the year. He allowed three or more runs in every start but one in that stretch, and he carried a 9.82 ERA. Although, it should be noted his FIP of 3.87 was far lower, indicating the struggles weren’t entirely his fault. They skipped his start once to try and get him on back on track, but it didn’t work.
Nola went on the 15-day disabled list in early August, then was later transferred to the 60-day DL. Klentak revealed Nola had “a low-grade sprain of his UCL and a low-grade strain of his flexor.” Any time someone hurts their ulnar collateral ligament, the shadow of Tommy John surgery looms large.
Nola underwent a throwing program and is expected to be ready for spring training. Even then, spring training will be a test to see if Nola’s arm is truly healthy. Our own Tyler King speculated that the Clay Buchholz trade indicated the Phillies aren’t confident in Nola’s health.
In 2017, Nola is expected to be a key piece in the Phillies rotation and us fans hope to see him return to his early-season form from 2016. Coming off the disabled list, confidence is certainly lower and it will be a huge question mark heading into next season.