Aaron Nola struggles in Phillies’ tie with Marlins; Ranger Suárez sharp in spring debut

CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Phillies played two games on Friday afternoon: One in Lakeland, Fla. against the Detroit Tigers, and one at home in Clearwater, Fla. against the Florida Marlins. They lost to the Tigers, 4-2, and tied their home game at 6.

On the mound: Ranger Suárez pitched well against the Tigers in his first start of the spring. He allowed just one hit and no earned runs over three innings with two strikeouts. He threw 38 pitches, 26 of them strikes.

“I heard that it looked very good, very efficient, so that was good news,” manager Rob Thomson said.

Aaron Nola, who started in Clearwater, struggled in his three innings of work. He allowed seven hits, four earned runs, and hit one batter. He didn’t strike anyone out.

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Nola didn’t throw many curveballs, which Thomson believes contributed to his results.

“He went out and the plan was to not use his curveball as much,” Thomson said of Nola. “He wanted to work on his fastball command, he wanted to work on his cutter and his change-up, and the stuff was actually not bad for me. But I think — they were hacking and he was throwing a lot of strikes. And he wasn’t using his curveball.”

Nola said his body felt good. He has been using this time to get used to the new pitch clock with runners on (pitchers now have 18 seconds, as opposed to 20 last season) and his slide step. He added the slide step during last season, but hasn’t had the chance to use it in spring training games until now.

Who stood out: Pitching prospect Griff McGarry made his first outing of the spring in Clearwater. It did not disappoint. McGarry struck out the side on 15 pitches in the top of the sixth, while sitting 94-95 mph.

Cristian Pache made a highlight-reel catch in the top of the third in Clearwater, to rob Bryan De La Cruz of a sure extra-base hit. De La Cruz’s line drive came off his bat at 111.9 mph but the speedy outfielder was able to track it down just in time.

Against the Marlins, Scott Kingery hit a two-run home run in the sixth, and recently acquired catcher Cam Gallagher hit a solo home run in the eighth.

» READ MORE: Griff McGarry hit rock bottom on the mound. But the Phillies think it can be a catalyst for change.

Quotable: “It’s always been control not command,” Thomson said of McGarry. “So, we’re getting him to power the ball through the zone. And when he does that, he’s going to have success, because he has really good stuff.”

On deck: The Phillies play the Minnesota Twins at BayCare Ballpark at 1:05 p.m. Saturday. The game will be televised on NBC Sports Philadelphia and broadcast on the radio on 94.1 WIP.