Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola (27) throws a pitch during the second inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citizens Bank Park. Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Philadelphia Phillies Veteran Set to Rejoin Rotation Following Injured List Stint

Originally posted on Fastball on SI | By Sam Connon | Last updated Aug 14, 2025 6:18 PM ET

After three months on the shelf, Aaron Nola is finally in line to return to the big leagues.

Nola is set to start for the Philadelphia Phillies in their series finale with the Washington Nationals on Sunday, The Athletic's Charlotte Varnes and others reported Thursday. It will mark Nola's first appearance since May 14.

The 32-year-old right-hander initially hit the 15-day injured list with a right ankle sprain, but he was shut down and transferred to the 60-day injured list after suffering a stress reaction in his right rib cage in June.

After three Triple-A rehab starts in a two-week span, Nola was cleared to rejoin the MLB rotation.

Aaron Nola will start Sunday. Ranger Suárez will go Monday. The Phillies will utilize a six man rotation with Taijuan Walker upon Nola’s return.
— Charlotte Varnes (@charlottevarnes) August 14, 2025

Before he went down, Nola was battling through a shaky start to the season. He went 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA, 1.510 WHIP, 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings and a 0.0 WAR across his first nine starts. Upon returning in the minors, though, he posted a 2.19 ERA, 1.135 WHIP and 12.4 strikeouts per nine innings.

Nola led MLB with 208 starts between 2018 and 2024, reaching 32 starts in each of the six non-COVID seasons. While he only made one All-Star appearance in that span, he earned NL Cy Young votes four times and went 80-57 with a 3.64 ERA, 1.109 WHIP, 10.0 strikeouts per nine innings and a 29.4 WAR.

Even with Nola healthy again, the Phillies will keep Taijuan Walker as a starter and roll with a six-man rotation for the time being.

Philadelphia holds a 5.0-game lead over the New York Mets in the NL East standings with just over six weeks left in the regular season. They could continue to surge ahead with a big series against the last-place Nationals, which gets underway Thursday at 6:45 p.m. ET.

Nola's return is scheduled for 11:35 a.m. ET on Sunday, and it will air on Roku.

This article first appeared on Fastball on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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