3 Phillies Who Will Be Gone After the Postseason

3. Aaron Nola

This is a tough one, but I’m not confident that Nola will be back next year.

He’s going to be a free agent this winter, and he’s sure to draw a lot of interest. When players reach free agency, they’re more likely to leave than stay. It’s just a fact of life, unfortunately.

I’m sure Dombrowski will try hard to retain him, but another team may want him more and be willing to overpay.

If that happens, Nola is probably gone, and we should be okay with that. While he was great last year, two of his last three seasons have not been good. He had a 4.63 ERA in 2021 and a 4.46 ERA this year, so he’s no longer an ace, even though he’ll probably get paid like one.

Nola also has a lot of mileage on his arm, especially after back-to-back postseason runs. He’s going to turn 31 next year, so he’s at an age where pitchers tend to break down.

In fact, it may already be happening. Nola posted the worst home run rate of his career this year (1.5 HR/9) and had his lowest strikeout rate since 2015 (9.4 K/9). His 4.03 FIP was also one of the worst marks of his career and should be worrisome.

It’s tough to lose a guy who’s spent his entire career with your organization, but letting Nola leave is the right call. We’ll see if Dombrowski has the courage to do it, though, as he tended to re-sign his own guys in Boston when possible.

You know what else is the right call? Signing up for FanDuel Sportsbook. They’re handing out $200 in bonus bets to new users who sign up through our link and place a first wager of just $5. Best of all, these credits are guaranteed, so you don’t even have to sweat out the result of your first bet! Hit the link below before it’s too late!