There’s no doubt the Mets have been star-crossed. The best example? No championship since 1986. But there’s one thing Mets fans can’t deny: the franchise has had a lineage of great pitchers, and it looks like Nolan McLean is next in line.
There was Tom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, Jerry Koosman, Jon Matlack, Matt Harvey, and Jacob deGrom. Bill Pulsipher, Jason Isringhausen, and Paul Wilson could have been great if injuries had not derailed their careers.
Nolan McLean (photo courtesy NorthJersey.com
On Wednesday night, McLean made his third start of his major league career against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field. It was the best start of his starts, and he did great in the other outings. He stymied the #5 offense (based on runs scored) by striking out six and allowing four hits and no walks in eight shutout innings in the Mets’ 6-0 victory over the Phils.
The win also made the difference between the Mets cutting three games or one game off the Phillies’ lead in the National League East race.
McLean is pitching like a rising star who is ready to make an impact in Major League Baseball. Overall, he is 3-0 in 21 innings pitched with a .89 ERA, 21 strikeouts, and a .69 WHIP.
To be sure, McLean did not overpower the Phillies the way Matt Harvey used to do. But he was able to confuse them by painting the corners all night long. He made it look easy, too, by mixing fastballs, sinkers, curveballs, and sweepers. The result? The Phils totaled 13 swings and misses. McLean also threw plenty of strike-one pitches to set the tone in his matchup against the hitters. He finished off Harrison Bader to end the third inning with a strikeout, and he did it again against Bryce Harper to end the fourth inning.
There’s more to his story. He worked fast and minimized the pitch count–39 pitches entering the fourth inning and 72 pitches by the seventh inning. That’s unheard of these days when hitters seem to know how to make a pitcher work. He finished the night by throwing 95 pitches.
McLean was in the process of throwing a one-hitter in the seventh inning by retiring 15 in a row after giving up a hit to Alec Bohm in the second inning. Harper got the Phillies’ second hit of the game with two outs. Even when McLean’s velocity was slowing down to the 80s, he was able to mix in a 90-mph pitch.
But I thought it was surprising Mets manager Carlos Mendoza had his rookie starter in the eighth inning after the Mets took a 6-0 lead in the seventh inning on Mark Vientos’ two-run home run. It would have made sense not to waste McLean in what was a blowout, but with the bullpen being overused, Mendoza wanted to squeeze one more inning out of his young starter. That said, Mets’ starters rarely go eight innings, and that may be the most impressive part of his night.
What the kid has done is offer hope to a franchise that has struggled recently. Winning all three of his starts is huge, and the team is 13-8 overall since his call-up.
The Amazin’s can dream big again. They are hitting as everyone expects them to do, and McLean and Tong have a chance to be co-aces, which would put them in a position to start in the postseason. After so much despair, there’s hope in the name of championship dreams.
