THE FIRST TIME Aaron Nola faced a major league hitter, Cameron Rupp was behind the plate. This was last March, at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Fla., in the second inning of a Grapefruit League game against the Yankees.
"He's the same pitcher I caught that day in spring training as he is right now," Rupp said, his bearded face breaking into a grin as his eyes drifted off into a flashback.
Right now happened to be Monday evening, an hour or so after the Phillies sent a 22-year-old righthander to the mound to start the first home game of a season that they have marketed as the first step into a new generation.