Phillies' Aaron Nola Reportedly Starting vs. Braves over Zack Wheeler For MLB Playoffs Series Finale

The Philadelphia Phillies will go into Thursday's winner-take-all Game 3 against the Atlanta Braves in the National League Wild Card series with Aaron Nola starting on the mound.

Per The Athletic's Matt Gelb , Phillies interim manager Don Mattingly is going with Nola rather than using Zack Wheeler on short rest with a spot in the NLDS at stake.

The Braves will counter with lefty Ray Kerr as an opener.

As a result of their four-game losing streak last week that prevented them from clinching a playoff spot early, the Phillies had to use Wheeler on the final day of the regular season.

Wheeler allowed one run over six innings in a 7-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays to help Philadelphia secure its postseason berth, but the situation left his status for the wild card round unclear.

Even though Wheeler won't get the start, Mattingly told reporters after Wednesday's 4-3 win to extend the series "it'll be pretty much all hands on deck" for Game 3.

The Phillies are fortunate to have a deep starting staff that allowed them to go with All-Stars Jesús Luzardo and Cristopher Sánchez in the first two games against Atlanta.

However, Game 3 left Mattingly with a decision between Nola or Wheeler. John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia noted Wheeler has never started a game in the regular season or playoffs on short rest.

Wheeler's only relief appearance in his MLB career was in Game 7 of the 2023 NLCS against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He tossed 1.2 scoreless innings in a 9-7 loss.

Nola will be pitching on regular rest after starting on Saturday against the Rays. He only made it through one inning, allowing three runs on four hits in a 12-1 loss.

While Nola's overall stat line this season doesn't look great with a 4.67 ERA, he did get better as the year went on. The right-hander had a 3.33 ERA in 14 starts after the All-Star break.

Nola made three starts against Atlanta this season with two coming in a five-day span from Sept. 6-11. He allowed three runs and struck out eight over 13.1 innings in those two outings last month.

The Phillies forced Game 3 against Atlanta thanks to Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper hitting back-to-back homers in the eighth to tie the score at three. Alec Bohm delivered the go-ahead solo homer in the top of the 10th.

Andrew Painter finished the game on the mound with three scoreless innings out of the bullpen.

Game 3 between the Phillies and Braves from Truist Park will be played at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday. The winner will advance to play the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS starting on Saturday.