PHILADELPHIA — There was no debate, J.T. Realmuto said in April, that Aaron Nola was one of baseball’s “aces.” Nola pitched a shutout that day and Realmuto said the questions of Nola’s ace status were “not from people who know baseball.”
It was hard to disagree with four months ago with Realmuto, but Nola has rarely looked the part since.
He failed Sunday to complete five innings in a 7-4 loss to the Reds that knocked the Phillies out of first place. Nola allowed four runs in 4 1/3 innings and left with the bases loaded. He has a 4.99 ERA in 20 starts since his shutout on April 18 against St. Louis, which is the second-highest over that span among National League starters.
The Phillies lost two of three to Cincinnati and their two losses came with their top two pitchers on the mound while the Braves swept the Nationals in Washington. The Phillies trail the Braves by a game and have lost four of six since ending their eight-game winning streak.
It’s going to be difficult for the Phillies to keep pace with Atlanta if they can’t win the games started by Nola and Zack Wheeler.
Nola allowed a leadoff homer Sunday on his third pitch of the game before the Reds scored two more in the third behind a rally started with a one-out single by pitcher Sonny Gray.
He loaded the bases in the fourth with a walk and hit-by-pitch yet escaped without a run. An inning later, he walked Joey Votto on four pitches to load the bases and manager Joe Girardi declined to allow Nola the chance to escape this time.
Nola threw just 57 of his 88 pitches for strikes as he struggled with his fastball command. He walked three batters in just one of his first 21 starts this season, but Sunday was the second time he did so in his last three starts. He looked like an ace in April but has battled inconsistency ever since. The Phillies needed more on Sunday.
Bailed out by Bailey
Bailey Falter hadn’t pitched in a big league game since July 18. He missed most of the last month after he tested positive for COVID-19 and also for being in close contact to someone who had the virus.
And the Phillies didn’t try to work him in slowly as the left-hander entered with the bases loaded and one out in the fifth inning after Nola was lifted. It seemed like a chance for the game to get out of hand, but Falter kept the Phillies within striking distance. He struck out the first batter, walked the next to bring in a run, and then ended the inning with a flyout. After Nola’s disappointment, Falter gave the Phils a chance.
Missed chance
After Nola was lifted, the Phillies had the bases loaded with just one out in the bottom of the fifth. Nola dug them a hole, but this situation remained important thanks to what Falter did. Three batters later, it was finished. Bryce Harper worked an eight-pitch walk, Didi Gregorius hit a sacrifice fly, and Andrew McCutchen struck out. The Phillies scored twice, but it felt like they could have had more with the heart of their lineup batting.
Missed call
The hole became deeper in the eighth when the Reds scored three runs, but those runs would not have scored had home-plate umpire Sean Barber ruled Connor Brogdon’s 2-1 change-up as strike three. The pitch seemed to land in the strike zone, but Barber called it a ball. One pitch later, Barnhart had an RBI double.
Quick exit
Reds manager David Bell and right fielder Nick Castellanos freed up their Sunday by being ejected from the game in the first inning.
Castellanos objected to Barber’s called third strike and was quickly tossed after making the game’s second out. Bell ran from the dugout, argued his player’s case, and was thrown out by third-base ump Alan Porter, who stepped in between Bell and Barber. Bell played four seasons with the Phils so he may have been able to find a way for him and Castellanos to spend their Sunday.
