Phillies heroes Aaron Nola, Zach Eflin lean on their faith in the biggest moment of their lives

ATLANTA — They’ve been Daniel in the lions’ den, but they came through without a scratch. They’ve been Jonah in the belly of the whale, but they emerged from the depths unscathed.

Aaron Nola carries rosary beads to the mound. Zach Eflin has praying hands tattooed on his left arm. And no, they haven’t exactly faced the dangers of those Old Testament heroes, but they have, lately, faced trials that would quail the faint of heart.

They have not been faint of heart, and they will not be faint of heart as the Phillies begin the National League Division Series against the Braves on Tuesday afternoon.

Because, like those biblical ancients, their faith has carried them through tests they had not yet known.

Faith, and Nola’s curveball. And Eflin’s sinker.

In his previous eight seasons, Nola was his worst in September and October. He had a 4.60 ERA. He surrendered 32 home runs. But he posted a 2.36 ERA in six stretch games this year, including 6⅔ scoreless innings in Houston to clinch the Phillies’ first playoff berth in 11 years, and gave thanks as usual.

“I always lean on my faith. Doesn’t matter which month it is,” Nola said Monday. “Good or bad, I give thanks to God, just for this opportunity.”

Neither pitcher brings up his faith unless he’s asked about it. They don’t proselytize. They just play. And yes, Nola and Eflin understand that baseball in autumn is never just another game.

“We know what’s at stake,” Nola said.

They just don’t let it get to them.

» READ MORE: Phillies do the right thing at the right time, extending Rob Thomson before NLDS vs. Braves

The Phillies made it to the NLDS for the first time in more than a decade in large part because Nola repeated his playoff-clinching performance in his postseason debut, with 6⅔ scoreless innings in Game 2 of the wild-card series sweep in St. Louis. Ho. Hum.

“In those games, my focus was not try to be somebody I’m not,” he said. “All I can do is focus on what I can control, and let God do the rest.”

God, and Zach Eflin.

Eflin was a first-round pick of the Padres in 2012 who landed with the Phillies in a December 2014 trade, via a one-day stay with the Dodgers, for Jimmy Rollins. He was supposed to be a long-term answer in the middle of the Phillies’ rotation, perhaps pitching in tandem with Nola. When Elfin arrived, the pair — their lives rooted in scripture when most 22-year-olds were wasting their time and money — became fast friends.

Nola immediately thrived, but chronic knee issues kept stalling Eflin’s career. It happened again midway through 2021, and again midway through 2022. He wasn’t sure if he’d pitch again this season.

» READ MORE: Zach Eflin’s playoff-clinching first save after a long road back to Phillies was ‘really special’ to his dad

He missed a month, but a visit with a specialist in Pittsburgh helped him start to heal.

“I know he was super down about that,” Nola said. “Thank God he got that final procedure done, and now he’s feeling great. Closing out some games for us.”

Doing what?

That’s right. Closing.

With the rotation full when he returned in September, Eflin went to the bullpen. He gave up two runs in six tune-up appearances. And then Rob Thomson, with no real closer on the roster, gave the ball to Eflin at the end of Nola’s start in Houston. Elfin had never been a closer. It was a brave thing to do.

Eflin retired the Astros in order on 14 pitches. He earned his first save.

He gave up a run in Game 1 against the Cardinals. Then, in his first back-to-back appearance, he pitched out of trouble Saturday in Game 2. That earned him his first postseason save.

The first two games of the best-of-five series happen in Atlanta, and if the Phillies are lucky, Eflin will be a bottom-of-the-ninth savior. Nola will start Game 3, the first home playoff game in Philadelphia in 11 years.

Where will these feats leave them? Nola has a $16 million team option for 2023 with a $4.25 million buyout, so he’s sure to be back at the front of the rotation.

Eflin is a bit more complicated. He has a $15 million mutual option for 2023, but he has missed parts of the last two seasons with knee problems, and he could become a free agent after the World Series. Will his knees respond to bullpen duty better? Will his future be at the back of the bullpen? All he’s done in the past month is prove that he can do anything you ask him to do on the mound.

After all these starts and stops, Eflin could hardly be better positioned to cash in. He wasn’t eager to talk about that, or anything else, on Monday, but he and Nola operate on the same wavelength.

“I know it happened to him for a reason,” Nola said. “It couldn’t have happened at a better time, in my opinion.”

Of course, Nola’s opinion doesn’t matter much. Not when he lays his burdens before the Lord.

“If we look at it that way,” Nola said, “it kind of eases you.”