Phillies news and rumors 7/5: Zach Eflin writes touching message to Aaron Nola

Longtime teammates Aaron Nola and Zach Eflin faced off against each other in Tuesday’s Phillies-Rays game. (Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire)

Aaron Nola vs. Zach Eflin was a pitcher’s duel that lived up to the hype.

In the end, Nola got the best of his closest friend in baseball, going 7 1/3 innings and allowing only one run on a home run on the final pitch he threw. He tied a career high in strikeouts with 12. Eflin allowed two runs on four hits over seven innings.

After the game, the two exchanged jerseys at home plate. Both pitchers wrote a message for the other on the No. 2 patch. Nola’s message is hard to decipher, but based on a photo the Phillies posted on social media, Eflin wrote this:

“You’ll never know how much your friendship means to me. Love you brother.”

The two have been friends since 2015 when the pair pitched in the same rotation for Double-A Reading. Nola eventually got called up to the big leagues later that year and never looked back. Eflin debuted a year later in 2016. As Matt Gelb detailed in his story for The Athletic, Eflin was there for Nola during his September struggles and Nola was there for Eflin as he battled numerous knee injuries.

Eflin signed a three-year, $40 million contract this past offseason with the Tampa Bay Rays, the largest free agent contract ever handed out by the Rays, after the Phillies declined their end of a $15 million mutual option.

In his first season with the Rays, Eflin is 9-4 with a 3.24 ERA. He won’t pitch in the All-Star Game since he’s scheduled to start again the Sunday before the break, but he has a chance to make the AL team as an injury replacement.

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Destiny Lugardo

A lifelong native of Philadelphia, Destiny has been a contributor for Phillies Nation since January 2019 and was named Deputy Editorial Director in May 2020.

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