Phillies pick up Nola’s $18M option, Eflin enters free agency

On Monday, the Phillies made the easiest decision of the young off-season. Per multiple reports, the Phillies have picked up Aaron Nola’s $18 million player option for the 2023 season.

Also, per Jon Heyman, Zach Eflin has declined his $15 million mutual option with the Phillies and has now become a free agent.

Aaron Nola

Nola will remain one of the Phillies’ top two starters for 2023 before potentially hitting the free-agent market at the conclusion of the season.

This was a smart decision by the Phillies, but also a very easy one. Nola ended 2022 with a career-low 3.25 ERA. He signed a four-year extension worth $45M back in 2019, so this move means there’s one more year of stunning pitching before he’ll debate entering free agency at the end of the 2023 campaign.

It would be wise for the Phils to start extension talks long before then and after his incredible 2022 campaign, it’s hard to imagine that they wont. Either way, Aaron Nola has at least one more year in Philadelphia to be enjoyed by all.

Zach Eflin

Eflin, 28, was originally acquired by the Phillies from the Dodgers in the Jimmy Rollins trade. Making his debut in 2016, Eflin had been a member of the Phillies rotation for the better part of five years before transitioning to a bullpen role in 2022 following a knee injury.

Eflin was one of Phillies Manager Rob Thompson’s go-to guys out of the bullpen this postseason. He was on the mound for the Phillies initial playoff clincher against the Astros, along with closing out both games of the Wild Card Round and game one of the NLDS in Atlanta. Eflin also pitched in both the NLCS against the San Diego Padres and the World Series against the Houston Astros. He has proven that he is able to come into high-leverage situations and get hitters out.