Phillies scapegoats: 1 to fire, 1 to put on the hot seat, 1 to be patient with

Phillies scapegoat to put on the hot seat: Aaron Nola

Aaron Nola finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting last season. He averaged a blistering 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings and he was central to the resurgence of Philadelphia’s pitching rotation and the Phils’ subsequent run to the World Series.

Flash forward to the 2023 season and Nola looks completely mediocre on the mound. His 4-4 record is milquetoast enough, but his 4.70 ERA is the worst mark of his career since 2016. He’s averaging the lowest strike out rate of his career, he’s walking more batters than last season, and yet he’s still handling a workhorse role for the Phillies. He sits at the top of the league in starts and innings pitched.

Nola was recently floated by ESPN insider Jeff Passan as a potential trade deadline mover if the Phillies can’t turn their season around before the August trade deadline. Nola’s contract expires at season’s end and it’s hard to imagine the parties reconvening next year if the product doesn’t improve.

The Phillies’ pitching staff has struggled in general, but at least there have been signs of improvement from Zach Wheeler and those behind Nola in the rotation lately. Not so with Nola, who continues to wipe out promising stretches with critical errors on the mound. His seat is definitely getting warm given the nature of his contract situation and the Phils’ overall struggles to keep opposing runs off the board.