Inside The Phillies

Phillies Ace Reaches Major Career Milestone With Win

Aaron Nola has won a lot of games for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Tyler Maher

Jul 5, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Aaron Nola throws against the Atlanta Braves.
Jul 5, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Aaron Nola throws against the Atlanta Braves. / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
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Aaron Nola has won a lot of games since debuting with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2015, including another one on Friday night against the Atlanta Braves.

Nola's latest performance wasn't quite a masterpiece, but it was good enough for the W. He tossed a quality start against the Braves, yielding three runs on five hits (two homers) in six innings. The veteran righty walked none, fanned eight and threw 73 of his 103 pitches for strikes, outdueling Max Fried en route to an 8-6 victory.

The win was Nola's 10th of the season, improving his record to 10-4 with a 3.48 ERA. It was also the 100th of his career -- a testament to his durability and success on the mound over the last decade.

With 10 wins this year, Nola has reached double-digits in three straight seasons and six times overall. The 31-year-old is on pace to threaten his high of 17, which he set during his lone All-Star season in 2018.

Nola is just the ninth pitcher in franchise history to reach 100 wins and the first since Cole Hamels -- a name Nola is often compared to. Since he debuted in 2015, only five pitchers have won more games than him: Gerrit Cole (125), Max Scherzer (124), Clayton Kershaw (112), Justin Verlander (108) and Zack Greinke (102).

Considering that all five of those hurlers have won at least one Cy Young award, Nola's in pretty good company.

Nola's win total doesn't include his postseason record, either, which would add another five wins to his ledger. With the Phillies leading the NL East and posting the best record in baseball, he'll likely have a chance to add to that total in October.

Until then, expect Nola to keep taking the ball every fifth day and racking up wins.

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Tyler Maher
TYLER MAHER

Tyler is a writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. He grew up in Massachusetts and is a huge Boston sports fan, especially the Red Sox. He went to Tufts University and played club baseball for the Jumbos. Since graduating, he has worked for MLB.com, The Game Day, FanDuel and Forbes. When he's not writing about baseball, he enjoys running, traveling, and playing fetch with his golden retriever.

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