Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola is entering the final year of his contract, but he is reportedly not interested in negotiating during the season. Therefore, the deadline for agreeing to an extension would be Opening Day on March 30.
However, the Phillies and Nola could not and will not reach common ground on a potential contract extension before the season begins next week, team president Dave Dombrowski announced Saturday.
“We think the world of him, quality pitcher, quality human being, but sometimes you get to this point where you’re not able to consummate a deal that both sides feel comfortable,” Dombrowski said, via The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Alex Coffey.
While the two sides could not come to an agreement this spring, both sides are willing to negotiate again after the season. Dombrowski made it clear that signing Nola long term is still a priority.
“We’re very open minded to trying to sign him at the end of the season,” he said. “We’re hopeful he'll remain a Phillie for a long time.”
As for Nola, his agent Joe Longo seemed optimistic about the way talks went and that the two sides can still agree to something this fall.
“We had good communication with the Phillies, we just couldn’t agree at this time,” Longo said, via Coffey. “We’ll pick up the conversation again at the end of the season.”
Nola has spent his entire eight-year career in Philadelphia, posting an ERA under 4.00 six times including on season under 3.00. He’s also been one of the more durable pitchers in the league, starting at least 32 games in each of the last four 162-game seasons.
This season is the final year of the four year, $45 million extension Nola signed in 2019. He will be 30 years old by the time he reaches free agency this offseason.
