It was a tale of two Nolas.
First, you had the sibling rivalry between the Phillies’ Aaron Nola and the Padres’ Austin Nola.
Two brothers. One, Aaron, the standout pitching star. And two, Austin, the older brother ever in the shadow of his younger brother.
The eldest Nola brother won this matchup. In fact, it was the first time a brother notched an RBI against a sibling in MLB postseason history.
However, this brother vs. brother matchup became merely a subplot for Phillies fans.
Instead of only allowing his brother to reach base, Aaron began unraveling. Hit after Padres hit saw the Phillies’ lead evaporate – along with any plans for the team to head back to Philly up 2 – 0 in the NLCS. The bleeding kept going for the Phillies to the tune of a 5-run fifth inning for San Diego.
Once again, it was a tale of two Nolas.
Prior to yesterday’s 4 ⅔ innings, Nola hadn’t allowed a run since September 28th against the Chicago Cubs. In that start, he went 6 innings and gave up 4 runs on 5 hits.
Nola helped the Phillies clinch a playoff berth on October 3rd with a 6 ⅔ inning performance against the Houston Astros. In 2 starts this postseason prior to yesterday, Nola gave the Phillies 12 ⅔ innings, 9 hits, 3 walks, and 12 strikeouts.
Down 7 – 4, the Phillies bats did little to pick up the slack for Nola. Aside from a Rhys Hoskins solo shot in the top of the 8th, Phils fans had little else to cheer about.
Well, that’s baseball I suppose. With the series tied at one a piece, the teams will face off tomorrow at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
If the NLDS vs. the Atlanta Braves is any indication, fans will be waving their red rally towels ready to play the role of the “10th man.”