Aaron Nola is a Cy Young finalist

After a stellar season in which he emerged as a true No. 1 starter and ace, Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola is a finalist for the 2018 National League Cy Young Award.

Nola will be competing against Washington Nationals stud Max Scherzer, who Nola outdueled twice in the month of September, and New York starter Jacob deGrom, who is seen as the favorite to win this award.

Nola had an incredible season, making all 33 starts and pitching 212.1 innings, 3rd most in the National League. His 2.37 ERA was 2nd in the NL (only deGrom’s 1.70 was better) and his 3.01 FIP was 4th, with an fWAR of 5.6 that was also 4th-best in the National League and a bWAR of 10.5 that was tops among…