PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — It took Aaron Nola a little while to find a rhythm Thursday afternoon against the Rays. He was greeted by three singles and a double within the first six batters of the game, then settled in to finish out his third start of the spring.
Nola gave up three runs in the first inning before retiring seven of the final nine hitters he faced, with a line-drive double play to Bryson Stott mixed in.
"Stuff felt good, body felt good," he said. "It took me a minute to get warmed up in that first inning, they hit a couple of balls hard. But overall, felt good.
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"The cutter was feeling pretty good today so I threw more cutters than last outing. Curveballs when I needed to, cutters and a couple of changeups. Not everything's going to work every time. The thing that's important to me in spring training is to keep all my pitches sharp and throw them for quality strikes, be able to throw them in any count."
In 8⅔ innings this spring, Nola has allowed seven runs on 13 hits with eight strikeouts and no walks.
It's not exactly a reason to sound the alarm. Nola had a 5.96 ERA the prior three springs. Most importantly, this is the time of year when veteran pitchers are working on wrinkles to prepare for the season ahead. In Nola's second Grapefruit League start when he was hit hard by the Marlins, for example, he wanted to stay away from his curveball, the pitch he threw more than any other last season.
"I thought he was fantastic," manager Rob Thomson said. "Two balls were hit hard. Commanded all of his stuff, got ahead in the count, velocity was good, cutter was good, threw more curveballs today. I thought all in all, he was outstanding."
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When asked what it would mean to him to start on Opening Day for the seventh straight year, Nola deferred to Zack Wheeler, saying maybe the nod should be his. The end of the month will be a busy time for the Nolas either way. He and his wife Hunter are expecting their first child the first week of April.
The decision, of course, will ultimately be made by Thomson. If the Phillies stay on rotation, Nola would line up to face the Braves in the opener, though there's a long way to go in camp. They could also alter the dates of Wheeler's remaining Grapefruit League starts to position him for March 28. Wheeler's first spring outing was Tuesday, the day after he officially signed his three-year, $126 million extension.
"Pumped," Nola said. "It was a needed signing and I'm glad we got it done. It's great for the team, the organization, the city. He's a stud and I love being his teammate. He's one of the best pitchers in the game.
"We've got a good club and guys are coming up on contract years all at the same time. It's a pretty special team. Being able to get to the playoffs the last two years with roughly the same guys, it's pretty special to have the same team and hopefully for years to come."