Aaron Nola dominates Braves to lift Phillies to series-opening victory

ATLANTA — For three months, the Phillies fought the urge to push Aaron Nola. They kept his pitch counts low and gave him additional rest whenever possible. But now, in the week before the All-Star Break, with precious ground to gain, they are pressing his foot on the gas, asking him to floor it.

And, lo and behold, Nola responded on Tuesday night with his gutsiest, if not his best start of the season.

Not only did the Phillies tweak the rotation to give Nola an extra start before the break, but in the opener of a three-game series against the division-leading Atlanta Braves, they turned him loose for a career-high 117 pitches over eight innings in a taut 2-0 win before a sellout crowd at SunTrust Park.

“It feels like we have our ace back,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “It feels like we have our horse back.”

Indeed, in outdueling Dallas Keuchel — the starter that Phillies fans clamored for before he signed last month with the Braves — Nola dialed back the calendar to last season when he was as good as just about any pitcher in baseball. On his 106th pitch, a 95-mph heater, he struck out Ronald Acuna Jr. to open the eighth inning. He got Dansby Swanson to fly out on his 112th pitch, a biting curveball. And he froze Freddie Freeman with pitch No. 117, a sinker on the inside corner.

Hector Neris slammed the door in the ninth inning, assuring that Jay Bruce’s two-out double in the fourth would hold up. The Phillies won for only the second time in nine games in Atlanta dating to last season, shaving the Braves’ lead in the National League East to 4½ games in the process.

“It’s a big win tonight for us, especially over here,” Nola said. “These guys have been playing really good the past month, month and a half. A win in the first game of the series is always big. We’ve got to keep stepping on the pedal the rest of the series.”

Interesting word choice. Nola celebrated the win by pedaling a stationary bike in the weight room 20 minutes after the game.

He will pitch again Sunday in New York against the Mets, the Phillies taking advantage of a day off Monday to keep him on his normal rest rather than giving him an extra day. But why deviate from how they have handled Nola so far in a season in which, until recently, he hasn’t come close to replicating his 2018 success?

It’s for the same reason that Kapler let Nola stare down the top of the Braves’ order for a fourth time with his pitch count having already reached triple digits.

“One of the questions I always ask myself is, ‘Who is best suited to get the next two or three outs?’” Kapler said. “And it felt like the answer was clearly Nola at that point.”

At this point, there’s nobody better for the Phillies to ride into the All-Star Break.

What a difference from June 15, Nola’s previous start in Atlanta, when he gave up five runs on six hits in 4⅓ innings and saw his earned-run average swell to 4.89. This time, he gave up four hits and racked up eight strikeouts against three walks, the continuation of a three-start stretch in which he has allowed a grand total of one run in 23 innings, struck out 28 batters and walked only five.

“My fastball command was the biggest part of that," Nola said. "Tonight it felt really good on both sides of the plate and I think it opened up some other pitches.”

Nola’s fastball had a little extra giddy-up, topping out at 95 mph and averaging 93.8, according to Statcast. As ever, though, his success is tied to his curveball. He threw 38 of them against the Braves and got eight swings and misses.

“It was pretty classic Nola,” Bruce said. “That was as hard as I’ve seen him throw. He was attacking. He was awesome. He really set the tone for us.”

That, as much as anything, underscored Nola’s brilliance.

The first week of July is still too early to describe a series as “make-or-break,” but the Phillies need their best players to start being their best players. Nola, for one, took a giant leap in that direction.

“It speaks to his mental toughness,” Kapler said. “Look, the best players in the game want the biggest moment. They want the spotlight. When everything is on the line, they want to be the guy that the rest of the team is depending on.

“One of the better performances that we’ve seen from him the last couple of years.”

Right on cue.