Breaking: Philadelphia Phillies sign sensational free agent target Braves player back

The Atlanta Braves saw perhaps their top free agent target come off the board on Sunday morning as righthander Aaron Nola agreed to return to the Philadelphia Phillies on a long-term deal.

The righty is reportedly signing for seven years and $172M, an average of just under $25M per year.

Nola, 30, has spent his entire career in Philadelphia after they took him with the seventh overall of the 2014 draft out of LSU.

Since debuting in 2015, Nola’s averaged a 13-10 record and 3.72 ERA in his nine seasons, being named an All-Star in 2018 and three times getting down-ballot Cy Young votes. He’s been a workhorse, pitching between 168 and 212 innings in every full season since 2017. His only injured list stint during that span has been for COVID-19

In 2023, Nola went 12-9 with a 4.46 ERA across 32 starts and just under 200 innings.

The return of Nola to Philadelphia on a long-term deal complicates Atlanta’s free agency plans – the Braves have been reported to be “determined” to not leave free agency without a frontline starter, and the options have now diminished with Nola off the board. Either Atlanta’s going to the top of the market for Shohei Ohtani or NPB star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, or they’re going to be forced to settle for a “next tier” option in Blake Snell, Sonny Gray, or Jordan Montgomery.