By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
National League wins leader — Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola — will make one final start before heading down to the nation's capital next week for his first-career All-Star game.
After starting the season 12-2 with a 2.27 ERA and 126 strikeouts in 123 innings, Nola was officially named to National League roster of the 89th Midsummer Classic Sunday evening. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native proved his All-Star worth just one day later, tossing seven shutout innings in the Phillies' 3-1 doubleheader nightcap victory over the New York Mets at Citi Field.
Nola called earning the All-Star nod "a dream come true," in a Wednesday morning appearance on MLB Network's "MLB Central."
"It's definitely an honor to be selected," Nola said. "I think the whole experience, talking to guys on the team that's been there, they just say 'enjoy it … it goes by really fast.' I think in D.C., it's a beautiful stadium … I'm definitely looking forward to it."
As MLB.com notes, only one other pitcher in Phillies history has "as many wins and as low an ERA" as Nola, prior to the All-Star break — Hall-of-Famer and four-time Cy Young Award winner southpaw Steve Carlton in 1980 (14-4, 2.14 ERA).
In addition to leading the National League in wins, Nola also leads in winning percentage (.857), ranks second in innings pitched (123), ERA (2.27) and WHIP (0.98), and has the fourth-most strikeouts (126).
