Phillies’ Aaron Nola looks to carry strong showing down the stretch into Game 2 start

ST. LOUIS — Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola is coming off the best September of his career, which is a big deal considering that entering 2022 he was known for collapsing down the stretch. Nola’s career ERA jumps from 3.11 in August to 4.26 in September, but this year, it dropped from 4.22 in August to 2.36 in September.

For catcher J.T. Realmuto, the reason is simple.

“It’s his location,” Realmuto said of Nola. “I think his velocity might have ticked up recently, but for me, it’s his location. He’s commanding the baseball with four different pitches. So, even if his velocity isn’t perfect that day, he’s going to be tough to hit.”

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Like Zack Wheeler did in Game 1 of the National League wild-card series on Friday, Nola will take the mound in Game 2 on Saturday to make the first postseason start of his eight-year career. Thanks to a tweak to his delivery — making it more compact, and trying to cut down on all of the moving parts — he feels like his command is as good as it has been all year.

Nola also believes he’s throwing with more conviction.

“No matter what pitch it is, or what count, I’m throwing that pitch with 100% conviction,” he said on Friday. “That’s the pitch we want to throw right there.”

He believes that conviction, combined with the tweaks, have led to the better command.

“I’ve just tried to be more consistent with it,” Nola said. “And that’s where the command comes from, is the delivery. And just the conviction behind each pitch, the belief behind each pitch. I think as I kept working on my delivery and trying to stay over the rubber as long as possible, I think that helps my command.

“If your delivery is not under control, it’s harder to command pitches with conviction. So, delivery comes first. But belief in everything, and belief that you’re going to get the guy out and you’re going to throw strikes, obviously trumps everything.”

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Nola has cut his walk rate down to 3.6% this season, the lowest in his career. He became the first pitcher since 1884 to finish a season with at least 220 strikeouts and fewer than 30 walks, ending up at 235 and 29, respectively.

He said he always had command, even as a kid, but as he got older and his body started to change, he had to tweak some things — mostly changes to his delivery.

He said his 2019 season served as a wake-up call of sorts. Nola’s walk rate was a career-high 9.4%. He walked 80 batters in 34 games, all starts.

“That’s obviously been the highest of my career,” he said. “And to me, it’s honestly unacceptable. That’s just too many free passes on the basepaths, and every spring training I go in and obviously work on that. And just this year, I really wanted to give myself a chance. Sometimes just challenge them, challenge them in the zone. Obviously don’t give them a cookie on the 3-0, 3-1, 3-2 pitch. But wanted to challenge them and not try to give them any free passes.”

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In a playoff game, when the margin for error is impossibly small, it’s vital to not give free passes. Luckily for the Phillies, Nola has done that all season.

“We obviously know it’s different than the regular season, and we know what’s at stake, but it’s still a baseball game,” Nola said. “We go out there and do what we’re best at, and play as a team, and each guy does their part. If we simplify it to that, everything will go the way it should.”