Aaron and Austin Nola were already the first pitcher-batter brother combo to face each other in MLB postseason history, with the duo squaring off in Wednesday’s Game 2 of the NLCS between the Phillies and Padres in San Diego.
Now, Austin Nola has another first.
The 32-year-old Padres catcher became the first player to get a hit against a sibling in the postseason, and he drove in a run on top of it.
Austin Nola Getty Images
The Phillies’ Aaron Nola reacts after allowing a solo home run to Josh Bell of the Padres on Wednesday. Getty ImagesThe RBI single off his 32-year-old brother and Phillies ace came in the bottom of the fifth, pulling the Padres to within a run of Philadelphia at the time. He later scored and San Diego eventually pulled ahead, rallying from a 4-0 first-inning to knock off the Phillies 8-5 to even the series at a game apiece.
Early in the game, Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal talked with the two players’ father, A.J., who was in the stands sporting a Phillies jersey over a Padres jersey, along with a San Diego hat.
“I was real anxious before the game, I’ve kind of settled down a little bit now,” he said. “Just got a little nerve-racking when Austin got up to the plate.”
The Nolas are the sixth set of brothers to play against each other in the postseason, and first since Roberto and Sandy Alomar Jr. in the 1997 AL Championship Series between Baltimore and Cleveland.
“I know his stuff very well,” Austin told reporters before the game. “We talk a lot about pitching. I use a lot of his knowledge and wisdom to teach me.”
“It’s pretty neat,” Aaron said. “We’re going to enjoy this moment and soak it in because we don’t know when it’ll ever happen again.”
Their father, who bought a motor home when the two were young so they could play travel baseball, anxious as he may be, was also happy to soak it all in.
“Everything to this point is just so surreal,” he said. “Worth every penny of it.”
Game 3 will be Friday night in Philadelphia.
