CLEARWATER, Fla. — Shortly after Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski revealed Saturday morning that extension talks had broken off with Aaron Nola, the right-hander was hit hard by the Yankees in their last grapefruit championship before Opening Day.
Damage: Five earned runs on six hits (including four extra bases) while facing just 11 batters in an 8-3 loss at BayCare Ballpark.
Nola said the timing was purely coincidental, and he quickly dismissed any talk of a distraction.
“I try not to let anything get to me, no matter what,” said Nola. “I’m going to finish my game, I’m going to focus on getting my plays done. That’s all I’m going to do. My main focus is wanting to have the best year possible with these guys and with this team.
“We were hoping [a contract extension] You will be done. I mean, we definitely tried to do that. But it didn’t work out right. This does not mean that it is over in any way. We’ll talk at the end of the season.”
Nola is entering the final year of aa’s four-year, $45 million extension ahead of the 2019 season that included a $16 million club option for the 2023 campaign.
Nola said he simply put a lot of pitches in the area against the Yankees, but added that his body feels great after the 37-pitch outing and is ready for Opening Day.
“It’s time to step on the gas,” Nola said.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson said he was not interested in Nola’s performance.
“He got his start and he got a few presentations,” Thompson said. “He caught a broken ball [on a homer by Josh Donaldson] And leave the cutter in the area [on a homer by Andres Chaparro]. They carried her in the wind and drove her out of here. He’s got his ball rolling and is ready for Opening Day’.
Thompson said he, too, wasn’t concerned about Nola’s contract talks.
“I think between the two parties it’s kind of a gentlemen’s agreement that if nothing’s done by Opening Day, then let’s just focus on the season and on showing it,” said Thompson. Then start again at the end of the year. I don’t really get into that kind of thing. ”
Dombrowski, on the other hand, is deeply involved. Nor was he worried, vowing to focus on the season before resuming talks with the NOLA camp.
Thursday will mark NOLA’s sixth consecutive opening drive, cementing its place in franchise history. Only two Phillies pitchers – Robin Roberts (12) and Steve Carlton (10) – have started more consecutive season openers for the club.
“We think Aaron’s world is a quality pitcher, a quality human,” said Dombrowski. “Sometimes you just get to that point where you can’t complete a deal that both parties feel comfortable with [with]. Aaron knows we’re very open to trying to sign him at the end of the season. We hope Phillie stays around for a long time. ”
Dombrowski said the team had indicated its interest in discussing a contract extension with Nola after the World Series, but serious talks did not begin until spring training.
“I think once [regular] The season starts, you better be in a position to just say, “Well, we tried really hard on both ends of it and it just didn’t work out.” And I also think from a player’s point of view… you don’t want that to be a distraction. We want him to go out there and win a bunch of games and be a good pitcher for us all season.”
Nola’s agent Joe Longo said in a statement: “We had a good connection with the Phillies. We couldn’t come to an agreement at this time. We’ll talk again at the end of the season.”
Nola, who turns 30 on June 4, was an 11-13-year-old with a 3.25 ERA last season and finished fourth in National League Cy Young Award voting. He leads all major league pitchers in starts (143) and innings pitched (871 2/3) since 2018.
The Phillies selected Nola with the seventh overall pick in the 2014 MLB draft and he made his major league debut the following year on July 21, 2015. He entered his ninth season in the league; They all spent themselves in Phillies uniforms.
Nola ranks seventh on the franchise’s all-time strikeouts list with 1,380 — and could find himself fourth on that list if he hits at least 206K this season. He’s averaged 227 strikeouts a year over the past four full seasons.
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