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

Nine years. Two-hundred and thirty-five starts. A future induction into the Phillies Wall of Fame. And seven more years to build his legacy in the city of Philadelphia.

The Aaron Nola era isn't over yet. The right-handed pitcher, who has spent a decade in the Philadelphia Phillies organization, has agreed to a seven-year, $172 million deal and passed his physical, according to Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer:

According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, Nola left money on the table from other teams in order to continue his career with the only organization he's known:

The 30-year-old was drafted seventh overall by the Phillies in 2014 out of LSU. After making 11 starts in 2014 between Single-A Clearwater and Double-A Reading, he amassed 18 starts with Reading and Triple-A Lehigh Valley before being called up to the big leagues in 2015.  

At 22 years old, Nola made his much-anticipated MLB debut on July 21, 2015. In the 88-pitch outing, he struck out six and only gave up one earned run in six innings. 

That year, the Phillies finished last in MLB with a record of 63-99. The next two years weren't much better, with the team posting 71 and 66 wins, before the Phillies eventually found themselves hitting the 80-win mark consistently.

During each of his first six years in the league, the Phillies finished .500 or worse. Overall, he has endured rebuilds, numerous personnel changes, a revolving door of teammates, four managers and five pitching coaches during his time in Philadelphia.

He came into the league at a time when the Phillies were preparing to ship beloved ace Cole Hamels out of town later that same month, burdened with the lofty expectations to become the ace of the future for the team.

He was up to the challenge.

As he prepared to make his major league debut, teammates and fans alike were in awe of the young pitcher. Then-catcher Cameron Rupp told Bill Evans of NJ.com: "It was packed around the bullpen right before the game and when he threw his last pitch they went nuts. Everybody's behind him, everybody's excited. We should be."

Through all of the chaos, the workhorse took the mound every five days and gave the fans something to look forward to as the rebuilding years were underway and optimism for the team's outlook was hard to maintain.

And to this point, he has put together one of the best pitching careers in Phillies history behind an elite curveball.

In nine seasons, Nola has a 90-71 record and 3.72 ERA in 1,422 innings. He has proved to be durable for the team, especially over the past three seasons. From 2021 through 2023, Nola pitched the third-most innings, according to FanGraphs, logging 579 1/3 innings.

According to Baseball Reference, as things stand now, he ranks in the top 10 of numerous pitching categories in Philadelphia history, including WAR (32.0, seventh), WHIP (1.129, ninth), hits per nine innings (7.81, tied for sixth-lowest), strikeouts per nine innings (10.013, first), punchouts (1,582, fifth) and starts (235, seventh).

NEXT: Nola carries the Phillies back to the postseason

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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