Pipeline Preview: Nola, Severino aim to finish strong

Aaron Nola and Luis Severino have made two of the most dramatic ascensions in the Minor Leagues this year. Nola began the year pitching for LSU and reached Double-A Reading just two months after the Phillies made him the seventh overall pick of the 2014 First-Year Player Draft. Severino began the year with Class A Charleston and earned two promotions to reach Double-A Trenton in July, shortly after making an appearance at the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game.

Friday, in their final starts of the season, Nola and Severino, ranked Nos. 46 and 65 on MLBPipeline.com's Top 100 Prospects list, are set to square off, as Reading begins a four-game series at Trenton. The game, which begins at 7:05 p.m. ET, can be seen on MiLB.TV.

Nola's year began Feb. 14 when he threw six scoreless innings for LSU against the University of New Orleans. Since then, he has logged 166 1/3 innings in college and the Minor Leagues.

While Nola has pitched well for Reading, just reaching Double-A this season was impressive. He became the first Phillies No. 1 pick in 28 years to play at that level the same year he was drafted. And Nola has more than held his own against the more experienced competition, posting a 3.32 ERA with 13 strikeouts and five walks in 19 innings.

Between Class A Advanced Clearwater and Reading, Nola, the Phillies' No. 2 prospect, has appeared in 11 games as a professional. He is 3-3 with a 3.22 ERA and has struck out 43 batters and walked 10 in 50 1/3 innings.

Severino, too, has impressed since reaching Double-A in July. The Yankees' No. 1 prospect has made five starts for Trenton and is 2-1 with a 2.66 ERA. He has struck out 25 batters and walked five in 20 1/3 innings. The lone negative in his season was a two-week stint on the disabled list earlier this month due to an oblique injury.

Across three levels this season, Severino is 6-4 with a 2.48 ERA in 23 starts. He leads all Yankees Minor Leaguers with 123 strikeouts and has walked 26 batters in 108 2/3 innings.

In addition to Nola and Severino, a few other pitchers ranked in the Top 100 are scheduled to start Friday, including Archie Bradley (No. 11), Julio Urias (No. 17), Nick Kingham (No. 61), Sean Manaea (No. 69), Luke Jackson (No. 73) and Touki Toussaint (No. 81). Fans can watch Bradley, Kingham and Jackson on MiLB.TV, beginning with Bradley and Double-A Mobile visiting Jacksonville at 7:05 p.m.

Urias, the Dodgers' No. 2 prospect, has struck out a career-high nine batters in five innings in each of his last three starts. During that streak, he has allowed just one run on nine hits and six walks. The young left-hander will look to continue his strong finish to the season when he takes the mound for Class A Advanced Rancho Cucamonga at Lake Elsinore. First pitch is scheduled for 10:05 p.m.

Top prospect probables:

Tyler Anderson (Rockies' No. 12), Tulsa vs. Northwest Arkansas
Corey Black (Cubs' No. 18), Tennessee at Chattanooga
Bradley (D-backs' No. 1), Mobile at Jacksonville
Austin Brice (Marlins' No. 17), Jupiter at Fort Myers
Edwin Diaz (Mariners' No. 7), Clinton at Quad Cities
Brian Flynn (Marlins' No. 10), New Orleans vs. Memphis
Domingo German (Marlins' No. 11), Greensboro at Kannapolis
Marco Gonzales (Cardinals' No. 3), Memphis at New Orleans
Jackson (Rangers' No. 3), Round Rock vs. Nashville
Kingham (Pirates' No. 5), Indianapolis vs. Columbus
John Lamb (Royals' No. 20) Omaha vs. Colorado Springs
Manaea (Royals' No. 3), Wilmington vs. Potomac
Cory Mazzoni (Mets' No. 14), Las Vegas at Albuquerque
Mike Montgomery (Rays' No. 17), Durham at Norfolk
Jon Moscot (Reds' No. 15), Louisville vs. Toledo
Nola (Phillies' No. 2), Reading at Trenton
Aaron Northcraft (Braves' No. 14), Gwinnett vs. Charlotte
Sal Romano (Reds' No. 16), Dayton vs. Lansing
Enny Romero (Rays' No. 6), Durham at Norfolk
Drew Rucinski (Angels' No. 20), Arkansas at Springfield
Severino (Yankees' No. 1), Trenton vs. Reading
Kyle Smith (Astros' No. 16), Corpus Christi vs. Frisco
Toussaint (D-backs' No. 3), Missoula vs. Billings
Nick Tropeano (Astros' No. 13), Oklahoma City at Iowa
Jose Urena (Marlins' No. 9), Jacksonville vs. Mobile
Urias (Dodgers' No. 2), Rancho Cucamonga at Lake Elsinore
Tyler Wagner (Brewers' No. 14), Brevard County vs. Dunedin
Devin Williams (Brewers' No. 6), Helena at Great Falls
Mike Wright (Orioles' No. 7), Norfolk vs. Durham