NEW YORK — The Mets, as manager Carlos Mendoza put it, did not needNolan McLean to play hero in his major league debut Saturday. They just wanted a good start, an outing that would give New York a chance to beat the Seattle Mariners and maybe, finally, ignite a turnaround after two-plus dismal months of baseball.
McLean did not put on a cape, but he delivered what the Mets needed, striking out eight hitters and flashing clutch leather over 5 scoreless innings in the team’s 3-1 win at Citi Field. The victory, the Mets’ third in 17 games, snapped a three-game losing streak. Thanks to McLean’s presence, it was accompanied by an amplified energy that was absent from the ballclub in recent weeks as the Mets played Whac-A-Mole, losing games in every which way possible.
“Definitely something that maybe we were missing,” Mendoza said of McLean, the Mets’ No. 3 prospect according to ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel. “Especially with how hard this stretch has been. We definitely felt it today.”
McLean, 24, a right-hander noted for his elite ability to spin the baseball, arrived in Queens on Friday to acclimate himself to his surroundings. The Mets, needing to clear a roster spot for him, designated veteran Paul Blackburn for assignment after Friday’s dispiriting 11-9 series-opening loss. On Saturday, McLean became the 43rd pitcher to take the mound for the Mets this season, a franchise record and just three shy of setting the major league mark. He looked like he belonged.
“Pretty impressive,” Mendoza said. “I mean, unbelievable. Pretty much everything that we’ve heard about him, the reports that we kept getting about him. Mound presence. Demeanor. Attack. The way he uses all of his pitches.”
McLean struck out Randy Arozarena looking at a Frisbee-like cutter to begin his major league career. The rookie ended his first inning by striking out Josh Naylor with a curveball that tallied 3,379 revolutions per minute. A curveball above 3,000 rpm is considered exceptional at the big league level.
“He went out there and he was poised,” said shortstop Francisco Lindor, who went 2-for-4 with an RBI to continue his recent hot stretch at the plate. “Since yesterday, he was just at ease. He executed from pitch one.”
A quarterback at Oklahoma State and two-way player in the minors until last summer, McLean showed off his athleticism and fielding ability in the third inning when he made a behind-the-back stop on a comebacker from Julio Rodriguez with the bases loaded and one out. A former third baseman, McLean situated himself and calmly fired a ball to second base to start an inning-ending double play to escape the first jam of his career, cracking a smile as he walked off the field and the crowd roared.
“I guess the ball just found me on that one,” McLean said. “Got a little lucky. Hit my glove. Wasn’t really something you draw up, but it worked.”
McLean struck out Rodriguez, one of the hottest hitters in baseball since the start of July, looking at a sinker with his 91st and final pitch. Mendoza then emerged from the dugout to take the ball from McLean with the Mets nursing a one-run lead, prompting boos from the home crowd that he, for once, welcomed.
“I heard them loud and clear,” Mendoza said with a smile. “And if I was sitting in the stands, I would be booing myself too. I completely understand. But look, I have a responsibility here, No. 1, to win games. But, No. 2, we’re talking about one of our best prospects that is making his major league debut. We have a plan in place. And I just had to make a decision. But I still love them.”
The jeers became cheers for McLean as he walked off the mound with his parents and other family members in attendance. He held the Mariners to two hits, walked four, and struck out hitters with his cutter, curveball, sinker and changeup. Every bit was needed to counter Mariners All-Star right-hander Bryan Woo, who gave up one run over six innings and has logged at least six innings in each of his first 24 starts this season.
“Surreal,” McLean said. “I mean, I couldn’t have dreamed it up any better.”
To avoid another nightmare loss, Mendoza did not take any chances. He replaced McLean with Gregory Soto, who has quietly been stellar since the Mets acquired him a week before the trade deadline. The left-hander secured five outs to keep his ERA with the Mets at 0.00.
Mendoza, in a clear sign of the game’s importance to the Mets, then gave the ball to closer Edwin Diaz in the eighth inning with a three-run lead. Diaz returned to the mound for the ninth with 14 pitches. Eugenio Suarez spoiled the shutout with his 38th home run of the season, but Diaz closed the door to end a good day for the Mets. It was the kind of day, from start to finish, they needed.
“We’re losing in many different ways,” Lindor said. “And today everything clicked.”br/]
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