Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola struck out his older brother Austin, a catcher for the Padres, when the two faced off in San Diego.
For the first time in their major league careers, Aaron Nola and his brother Austin faced off on Saturday. The edge went to the younger brother.
Pitching for the Phillies, Aaron struck out Austin, who is a catcher for the Padres, in the second inning of their meeting in San Diego.
Watch Aaron Nola strike out his brother Austin
What a moment for the Nola family to witness.
Aaron wasn’t messing around either. According to ESPN Stats & Info, he tossed his two fastest pitches of the season in the at-bat with his brother. His first pitch was 95.2 mph heater. He got a called strike on a 95.9 mph pitch then took down Austin with a 96.2 mph fastball. Those were the only pitches Austin saw.
The strikeout pitch was the third fastest of Nola’s career thus far.
This was the first time a Phillies pitcher has faced his position-playing brother, according to Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Austin got another chance at his brother in the fifth inning. This time he saw four pitches of much lower velocity. However, he popped out to second.
Both Nola brothers were drafted by the Blue Jays in 2011. Aaron established himself in the league well ahead of his older brother though. The 28-year-old debuted in 2015 and made the All-Star game in 2018. This year he has a 7-7 record with an ERA of 4.48.
Austin joined the Padres in 2020 as part of a trade with the Mariners. He has appeared in 36 hames while batting .275/.3667/.373.