Daily News | Aaron Nola and Zach Eflin have been best friends from the minor leagues to the World Series
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Nola reached the majors first, debuting in 2015 just 10 days before the Phillies traded Cole Hamels. Eflin made it the next season, arriving in time to play with Ryan Howard, who left after the season as the final connection to the last great Phillies era. The team’s arduous rebuilding process was underway.
Nola often said there was nothing to his September struggles. But the narrative had been written: He was a great pitcher but hard to rely on when the games mattered most. And for the Phils to finally break into the postseason, he had to change it. But the way he finished the regular season and his first two postseason starts is enough for the Phils to enter Friday’s World Series opener with confidence. Nola rewrote the narrative.
His rookie season was cut short by surgery on both knees and he spent time on the injured list in five of the last seven seasons. His talent was constantly slowed by injuries. But perhaps this season, he thought, would be different. “No matter the outing for Eflin, good or bad, he’s always the same guy,” Nola said. “He pushes through and always believes in himself.”