Nolan McLean Sparkles in Second MLB Start

Mets fans can take a deep breath: A starter not named David Peterson has made it through six innings.

In Friday’s series opener against the Braves, Nolan McLean became the first since Clay Holmes on June 7 to accomplish such a feat. Not only did it end an embarrassing streak for the Mets, but it gave them all the more assurance that perhaps McLean is here to stay.

“At this point, I don’t know what else to say about him,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters after the game. “This kid is special.”

McLean said he didn’t even know he ended the streak that’s been looming over this team. He only got promoted to the big-league club a week ago.

“I’m just going out there trying to win,” McLean said. “Every batter I face, I’m trying to get them out.”

McLean surpassed the six-inning threshold and added a seventh for good measure. He struck out seven, didn’t walk a batter, and allowed just four hits. His ERA is 1.46 through his first two major league starts.

He did surrender two runs on Friday — a two-out, run-scoring single in the third, and a Ronald Acuña Jr. home run in the fourth. But after Acuña’s blast, McLean settled in to retire 11 in a row.

He mixed in six pitches fairly evenly. He threw no single offering more than 31% of the time, with four of them going at least 15% of the time. Each his sinker and four-seam fastball topped out at 97.4 mph. The four-seam got the most swings and misses with five, as he averaged 96.2 mph with the pitch.

He threw his high-spin curveball a somewhat modest 14 times, but it induced two whiffs and an exit velocity of 25.8 mph on the lone time it was put in play.

McLean’s efficiency in the middle innings helped him get through seven innings without much issue. He threw a manageable 94 pitches — a breath of fresh air after so many Mets starters have hit a roadblock around the fourth, fifth, or sometimes earlier.

The pitch that sealed the sixth inning was an up-and-in fastball that struck out Acuña Jr. Registering at 97 mph, it tied Acuña up and forced an awkward half-swing out of him. McLean let out a little roar as he departed the mound.

He’s allowed just six hits in his first 12 1/3 innings as a big leaguer, collecting 15 strikeouts.

According to the X account OptaSTATS, McLean is the first pitcher in MLB history to have a 2-0 record, sub-1.50 ERA, sub-.150 opponent batting average, 15-plus strikeouts and fewer than five walks through his first two appearances. There are plenty of qualifiers in that statement, but it really emphasizes how well-rounded and polished McLean has been right away.

While the Mets’ rotation has been anything but consistent, McLean has added just a little more stability since his promotion. Although his career is still young, it’s not looking like McLean has to provide much more proof that he belongs in this rotation, which has been flawed at best lately.

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