MIAMI - Aaron Nola pitched a gem to lead the Phillies to a 6-0 win over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.
Nola delivered 7 1/3 shutout innings in the 67th start of his career. He allowed just four singles, a walk and struck out seven. It was one of the best starts of his career, up there with the eight shutout innings he pitched in a 2-0 win over Miami back on Aug. 23, 2015, his rookie season.
Nola did give up a couple of hard-hit balls, but the outfield defense was strong. At one point in the game, he retired 17 straight batters.
The victory snapped a season-high four-game losing streak for the Phillies and enabled them to avoid being swept by the last-place Marlins. Miami had won the first two games of the series. The two teams have split their first six meetings of the season.
The Phillies are off on Thursday before opening a three-game series in Washington on Friday night. The Phillies will send Nick Pivetta, Vince Velasquez and Jake Arrieta to the mound in that series while the Nationals will counter with Gio Gonzalez, Tanner Roark and Max Scherzer.
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Nola improved to 4-1 and lowered his ERA to 2.17. He has made five straight quality starts. (Six or more innings, three or fewer earned runs.) His only non-quality starts this season came in his first two outings, one in which he was pulled at 68 pitches. Nola allowed just one run in that game and was on his way to a quality start before the controversial quick hook.
Nola got all the offense he needed early as Cesar Hernandez led off the game with a home run against Miami starter Jose Urena. Urena committed a costly throwing error with two outs in the second inning that led to the Phillies' second run of the game.
The Phillies rallied for two runs in the top of the eighth to put the game away. Maikel Franco's second double of the game drove in one of the runs. The Phils scored two more in the ninth.
Nola came out for the eighth inning, got a quick out then was lifted after allowing a single to Lewis Brinson. Adam Morgan and Luis Garcia got through the eighth and Hector Neris closed it out.
Rhys Hoskins had a tough day at the plate. He struck out in his first four at-bats then singled in the ninth inning. He had been 1 for 19 with 10 strikeouts before the hit.
Odubel Herrera had an RBI single in the ninth to improve his on-base streak to 32 games, dating to last season.
