Welcome back, Nols: A tribute to the first chapter of Aaron Nola's Phillies career

Nola carries the Phillies back to the postseason

After years of failing to play deep into October, in 2022, the Phillies made the postseason for the first time since 2011. It represented Nola's first taste of the playoffs in his career.

So it was fitting that he was on the mound for game No. 160, putting up a brilliant performance to help the Phillies clinch that coveted wild-card spot. Against the Houston Astros, he struck out nine in 6 2/3 innings as the team went on to win 3-0.

How masterful was he? In the biggest pressure-filled moment of his career to that point, Nola carried a perfect game into the seventh inning against the Astros.

Fast forward to Sept. 26, 2023, and Nola once again found himself taking the field with the opportunity to send his team to the postseason for the second straight year, this time against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He turned in another 6 2/3-inning performance, giving up only one earned run as the team came back to win it in walk-off fashion.

In that same game, he achieved another feat, reaching 200 strikeouts for the fifth time in his career.

After the Pirates game this year, manager Rob Thomson made it clear how much faith he had in Nola, telling reporters: "I trust him with my life in a big game. He did it again."

It might have taken the workhorse eight years to get to the postseason, but he didn't waste any time once he got there. Over the past two seasons, he went 5-3 with a 3.70 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 48 2/3 innings across nine starts.

Teammates who are together for the grueling run of spring training, a 162-game regular season and hopefully the postseason know more than anyone what any given player means to the team. And over the years, they haven't hesitated to sing the praises of Nola.

"If I could label him and say how important he is as a pitcher and a teammate and just to an organization, it would be this game [against the Pirates]. You rely on him. You need him. And he goes out and does that," Kyle Schwarber said in 2022, according to Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia.

First baseman Bryce Harper dubbed Zack Wheeler and Nola — who have pitched on the same staff together since 2020 — "Ace 1 and Ace 2."

The two aces atop the lineup have made the Phillies a tough opponent, especially in the postseason:

"I'm so thankful for Aaron's friendship and the mentorship and what kind of teammate he is. You always root for guys like that. He's been a big brother to me my entire career and really helped me kind of find myself in the big leagues," former teammate Zach Eflin said when he faced off against Nola earlier in 2023, according to Adam Berry of MLB.com.

When talking about teammates in September with Evans, the homegrown talent said: "To me, my teammates are the most important right? I've been in battle with these guys for a while, that's what I love about it. ... It's a special group of guys."

NEXT: Nola shows his love for the fans and the city

The stoic Nola finally let his emotions show for the fans

When the two sides weren't able to work out an extension ahead of the 2023 season, it felt inevitable that we'd end up in a situation where Nola was on his way out of the city.

Nola has been known for keeping his emotions close to his chest, rarely putting on an outward display.

When talking to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com after the team clinched a spot in the 2022 postseason, Nola had the following to say: "I've always thought that if you don’t show any emotion, nobody can really pick up on it. ... If you give up a bad hit, what are you going to do about it? Mope? That makes it worse because then you make another bad pitch and it spirals. The only thing you can do is focus on the next pitch."

At various points throughout the 2023 season, though, the usually calm, cool and collected Nola let his emotions show more than usual, a sign that many took to mean the end of his tenure in Philadelphia was fast approaching. 

After tipping his cap to the standing crowd as he walked off the mound for what could have been his final regular-season start in Philadelphia for the home team, he was asked about his motivation behind the move.

"I've never done it before. I thought it was awesome. The fans were loud. They were in it the whole game. It was fun. Last home game of the season for me. Up and down season. Inconsistent. Tough one, man. Struggles. Successes. So, it was good to end on a note like that. ... I don't know what's going to happen, but I tried to soak it in as much as possible and cherish it as much as possible last week," Nola said, according to Matt Gelb of The Athletic.

He repeated the move when leaving the field after getting the job done in 5 2/3 innings against the Atlanta Braves in Game 3 of the National League Division Series.

Through all of the appreciation shown to the fans, though, one truth prevailed: Nola wanted to be a member of the Phillies.

As Nola wrote for The Players' Tribune in 2019 about adjusting to the city: "And it gradually got to a point where Philly began to feel like home. ... I love the place. Coming back from road trips and driving up to the stadium, I can take a deep breath….We’re back home. I mean, for me, this is the best place in the world to play."

Community involvement plays a big part in Nola's time in Philadelphia

Nola's impact extends beyond the game of baseball, though.

For Nola and his family, including wife Hunter, putting in time and effort away from the field has always been just as important — if not more so — as what happens on the diamond, and he has repeatedly proved that to Philadelphia and the surrounding communities.

Gelb detailed a 2019 trip to a children’s hospital in Delaware, where he interacted with the patients and talked to the Phanatic for kids when they were too shy to do it themselves.

Reflecting on the fact that his position allows him to make a difference, he said: "When you get called up to the major leagues, everything is kind of a whirlwind. There is a lot more to life than baseball. There is more importance to things like this than on the field."

In 2020, the team nominated him for the Roberto Clemente Award for his work across numerous charities and organizations, including the ALS Association, Shred Hate, Philadelphia Futures, Philabundance, and Hospitality Assistance Response of Pennsylvania. 

Referencing the importance of giving back, Nola told Zolecki: "It's a priority. Baseball obviously is a hard game. It can bring you up; it can knock you down. But at the end of the day our goal is to help others. Do everything we can. Because baseball is not going to last forever. But what you do and how you do it can last a long time."

NEXT: Nola's storybook ending is still possible

Nola's storybook ending is still possible

While it makes for a good story, it's not all that common to see a player start and end their career with the same team with no other pit stops along the way.

Ryan Howard was the last player to spend his whole career with the Phillies, coming into the league in 2004 before playing his final MLB game in 2016 before a couple of failed minor league stints with other teams kept his streak intact for the big leagues. Before him, Mike Schmidt played all 18 years with Philadelphia from 1972 through 1989. 

The new contract will take Nola through his age-37 season. Barring any moves along the way, by the time he hits free agency in 2031, he'll be 38 years old. Assuming he stays with the Phillies for the duration of the contract and can remain healthy, there's a real possibility Nola joins that list and retires having only played for the organization that drafted him.

In October, the 30-year-old made it clear he wanted to return to Philadelphia, according to Zach Crizer of Yahoo Sports: "I love it here. Obviously, it's the only place I've been. I came up through some special times in the rebuilding era, and getting to witness and be a part of a lot of different types of teams. To be on a team like I am now, it's really cool and special to see and to be a part of all the success and failures to get to where we are now."

It hasn't always been smooth sailing for the righty. The fans let him hear it when he turns in subpar performances — like they do with every athlete who dons a Phillies uniform — and this past year was more up-and-down than usual, as Nola himself acknowledged.

After having perhaps the best year of his career in 2022, when he finished fourth in Cy Young voting, his stats slid a bit on the way to a 12-9 record, 4.46 ERA and career-high 32 home runs surrendered in the regular season as he dealt with issues with his mechanics and the pitch clock.

However, Nola has embraced the passion of the fans:

With this contract, Nola remains the longest-tenured member of the Phillies. As the team gets ready for the 2024 campaign, Nola has a chance to be named Opening Day starter for the Phillies for the seventh straight year, a role he has held since the start of the 2018 season.

Nola helped bring October baseball back to the city of Philadelphia. He has given the organization, the city, and the fans nine years of memories and has left everything on the mound as he endured the ups and downs of the early years.

Now, the next chapter begins as Nola returns to Philadelphia with the hope of helping the Phillies return to the postseason for the third straight year and of bringing another parade to Broad Street.

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