This story was excerpted from Todd Zolecki’s Phillies Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

PHILADELPHIA -- Aaron Nola likes to spend his offseasons with his wife, Hunter, and their dogs in his souped-up Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van, crisscrossing the country, finding Cracker Barrels along the way, where he orders chicken fried steak and eggs before spending the night in the restaurant’s parking lot.

Nola has been one of baseball’s best pitchers for years, but he enjoys the simple things.

One had to wonder, however, if Nola’s struggles and frustrations this season could be tied to something more complicated: The hundreds of millions of dollars at stake based on how he pitches this year.

Nola, 30, will be a free agent following the season. The Phillies and Nola’s agents discussed a contract extension in Spring Training, but the sides were so far apart that they halted negotiations and agreed to resume them after the season.

The decision came with risks. For the Phillies, the better Nola pitches, the more unattainable he might become. For Nola, a poor season or serious health issues could cost him millions upon millions.

“No, no, no,” Nola said Tuesday afternoon, smiling. “I honestly haven’t been thinking about it. The only thing I’ve been thinking about is how I’m going to get better on the mound, not walking so many guys and making better pitches with guys on base.

“That’s been my focus. Honestly, the contract stuff hasn’t been weighing on me at all.”

Nola is 5-4 with a 4.30 ERA in 13 starts following a stellar performance Monday night against the Tigers at Citizens Bank Park. He had a no-hit bid through 6 2/3 innings before allowing a three-run home run to former teammate Nick Maton. (All three runs were unearned.) Nola struck out 12 and walked three. His four-seam fastball averaged 93.4 mph, up 1.5 mph from his season average.

Nola needed a start like that. His season has been a grind. He ranks 52nd out of 69 qualified pitchers in ERA as he continues to figure out how to pitch most effectively with a pitch timer. His expected metrics (.233 xBA, highest since 2019), .408 xSLG (highest in his career) and 3.66 xERA (highest since 2019) are not to his standards. His strikeout rate (23.6%) is his lowest since his rookie season in 2015. His walk rate (6.4%) is his highest since 2020.

But Nola has time. He has anywhere from 18-22 more starts to go.

“I hope to keep it going,” he said, referring to Monday’s start. “Hopefully, I can keep my fastball where it’s at command-wise and keep my body healthy.”

If Nola pitches better down the stretch, he will get that big payday. It probably happens anyway. Nola leads baseball with 81 2/3 innings, which has tremendous value in today’s game with so many pitchers dealing with injuries and/or unable to pitch deep into games.

Chicken fried steak and eggs will be on him in the future, no doubt.