Austin Nola knocks in game-winning run for Padres off little brother Aaron
Aaron Nola had an outstanding day on the mound on Friday. Thanks to his big brother, it wasn't quite good enough.
San Diego catcher Austin Nola took the plate in the sixth inning with his Padres locked in a scoreless tie against the Philadelphia Phillies. First baseman Eric Hosmer stood on second base after a one-out double. On the mound? Austin's little brother Aaron.
Aaron, 29, got ahead early with an 0-2 count. His third pitch was a 92 mph fastball that caught the outside corner of the plate. Austin, 32, swung and sent a line drive to right field that landed fair and short of the warning track. It was more than enough to plate Hosmer for the go-ahead run. Austin was all smiles after reaching first base safely.
Austin Nola gets the go-ahead hit against his brother, Aaron 🔥pic.twitter.com/RmgRcHFzsd
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 25, 2022
The matchup was the third of the day for the Nola brothers. Aaron induced a groundout in Austin's first at-bat and struck Austin out looking in the fourth inning.
Aaron Nola strikes out Austin Nola because why not pic.twitter.com/hZo70xBDaj
— Mr Matthew CFB 🇺🇦 (@MrMatthewCFB) June 25, 2022
But big brother got the best of the matchup in the sixth to plate the first run of the day. Aaron finished his day allowing just one run through seven innings while recording 10 strikeouts. But Austin's RBI was all the Padres needed as they closed out a 1-0 win.
Per Stathead, the matchup was the second ever in MLB between the brothers and produced the first hit for Austin, who was 0 for 2 with a strikeout and a walk in a 2021 game against Aaron. After Friday's game-winning RBI, Austin's secured a firm grip on family bragging rights.