Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola finally looking like himself again

After struggling to start the year, Aaron Nola is finally looking like the Phillies ace that was a Cy Young finalist last year.

Aaron Nola‘s early-season struggles have been well-documented. He looked okay on Opening Day against the Braves, but his next few outings were not like the Nola the Phillies have been accustomed to in recent years.

Coming into the year, we just assumed that Nola would be the guiding presence at the front of the rotation. Thankfully, it appears Nola is returning to the kind of pitcher who was a Cy Young finalist last season.

Nola was great against the Cardinals Tuesday night, striking out seven batters in six innings. He gave up just one run on a home run and only three hits and one walk altogether. It was his best start of the year by game score.

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This outing caps off an effective string of starts for Nola in the last few weeks. It is his third straight appearance allowing just one run, going 5.2 innings or more each time. It was his tied for his lowest walk total as well as the third-highest strikeout total of his eight starts so far this season.

If you look at Nola’s first four starts versus his last four, there is a very stark contrast. In his first four, he had a 7.45 ERA, 6.24 fielding-independent pitching, 8.84 strikeouts per nine innings, 5.12 walks per nine, and a 1.66 WHIP. In Nola’s last four, including last night, he has a 2.25 ERA, 3.72 fielding-independent pitching, 9.75 strikeouts per nine innings, 2.25 walks per nine, and a 1.33 WHIP.

With Nola succeeding once again, it puts less pressure on the offense and the rest of the rotation to pick up the slack. When Nola started a game last year, confidence was high that the Phillies would win that game. If he is indeed back to that level of performance, it makes this team’s playoff odds that much better.

A crucial part of Philadelphia’s success this season is Nola’s ability on the mound. Pretty much everyone assumed he would still be an ace-caliber pitcher, even if he wasn’t Cy Young level. In his last four starts, Nola once again looks like the ace this team needs.