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Aaron Nola's change-up continues to blossom in another gem

The 24-year-old righthander threw 20 more off-speed pitches Friday night, six of them for swings and misses.

Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola worked on a change-up in the offseason, and now it’s paying off.
Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola worked on a change-up in the offseason, and now it’s paying off.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer

Pete Mackanin liked what he saw from Aaron Nola when Nola arrived for spring training, though the 24-year-old righthander missed the final two months of last season with an elbow injury. It would be a few months, though, before Mackanin saw Nola on the hot streak he has found over the past six starts.

The difference in that time was that Nola developed a reliable change-up to go with a fastball and curveball that had already positioned him in the Phillies' rotation. The change-up, which he threw 20 more times Friday night, lifted him to another dominant outing. He has a 1.70 ERA in the past month, adding to that with seven innings of one-run baseball against the Milwaukee Brewers.

"He's been working on that change-up all year, and it's really one of his better pitches right now," Mackanin said.

The 20 change-ups generated six of Nola's 15 swings and misses, more than any other pitch. He struck out eight of nine hitters from the third inning until the sixth. He kept the Brewers off balance, efficient enough to finish seventh innings for the sixth straight time.

The change-up is the difference between Nola as an inconsistent starter and him over the past month. In his first two big-league seasons, he had not developed the pitch and threw it 11.6 and 8.5 percent of the time, respectively. Entering Friday, that number was 15.6 percent this season.

"I think the more I worked on it, it got better," Nola said. "I feel like the change-up's a feel pitch, especially for me. Just the right arm action and working on it as much as I did helped."

The change-up has become more effective, as well, as Nola has started to use it more. As the Phillies seek encouraging signs for the future, Nola's blossoming arsenal is high on the list.

"No question about it," Mackanin said. "He threw a ton of [change-ups] tonight, righties and lefties. I talked to him when he came out. He was really excited about throwing the change-up, not just to lefties but to right-handers as well. If he can do that with the rest of his arsenal that he has, I expect a really good performance every time he goes out."