Aaron Nola's no-hitter flirt should have these 3 teams dreaming of a trade
By Tim Boyle
Aaron Nola was a home run from Nick Maton away from history. A three-run home run by the former Philadelphia Phillies infielder broke up a Nola no-hitter in the top of the seventh inning. Even if he isn’t joining the history books, Nola did the Phillies a big favor even if they end up as sellers.
The Phillies have yet to set themselves up as a true contender this year. Nola’s own poor performance is one of the reasons for it. He came into the start with a 4-4 record and 4.70 ERA. Monday’s start against the Detroit Tigers is hopefully, for the sake of Philadelphia, the start of something new.
Nola is the most obvious trade piece for the Phillies. It’s these three teams who could use him most.
1) Phillies trade destination for Aaron Nola: Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks have snuck up on the rest of the National League. They’re looking like one of the best in baseball and worthy challengers for the National League West title. They’ve done it with ace Zac Gallen and his cohort Merrill Kelly leading the rotation. The rest of their starters haven’t been all that great. They could use Nola, an experienced starter, as their number three.
Nola is exactly what the Diamondbacks should be looking to acquire at this year’s trade deadline. Luckily for the Phillies, the Diamondbacks have one of the better farm systems in baseball. They can afford to give up several pieces or even one very good one.
The Phillies wouldn’t expect to get a player like Druw Jones in return for Nola. None of their three top 100 prospects should be on the table for a short-term rental.
Arizona still has a couple of other pieces who could be fits for the Philadelphia farm system. Their top 10 includes multiple pitchers and corner infielders. We’ll all be crossing our fingers and hoping Nola stays put in Philadelphia at least through the rest of the season. It comes down to selling, the Diamondbacks might be the team in need of him most. They happen to have a couple of major leaguers who have graduated from prospect level the Phillies could seek to add as reclamation projects. The options are unlimited.