For the second straight start, Nolan McLean was tasked with helping the Mets get back in the win column after a losing streak.
In his first major league start, the rookie gave New York 5.1 shutout innings to help the Mets snap a three-game losing streak in their win at home, but on the road, against the rival Braves, the 24-year-old was even more impressive.
He pitched seven innings, allowing just two runs and striking out seven in the Mets' 12-7 win on Friday night, snapping their two-game skid.
"On a night where the sweeper and the curveball, he was having a hard time landing it for strikes, to get ahead and put hitters away, he still found a way to give us seven," manager Carlos Mendoza said after the game. "Kept going back to the fastball, the sinker, he used the changeup, he didn’t shy away, he competed in the strike zone. Reached 97 when he needed to, he moved the ball around and kept trying to throw the breaking balls."
"Felt good. Early in the game, I was getting behind in counts, didn’t love that," McLean said of his outing. "Hit a batter on my first pitch, went smooth after that, found a second wind there in the fifth inning. Felt good."
As Mendoza said, McLean's secondary pitches were a bit all over the place, but the right-hander had the conviction to throw them when necessary to get them back in his repertoire, like any veteran would do.
"It’s all about being able to adjust, try to find a feel that gets it back in the zone," McLean said of trying to find the feel on his pitches on the fly. "And being able to rely on other pitches and trust your catcher to call games to set up other pitches to get outs as well."
"That right there shows a lot about who he is," Mendoza said. "We saw a lot that first outing, but even today, against that lineup, that was pretty impressive."
McLean, who didn't allow a run in his first start, gave up his first in the third inning and then a solo shot to Ronald Acuña Jr. to lead off the fifth. But that's all the Braves would get off the talented youngster, as he put it, found his second wind and would retire 11 straight batters at one point. The right-hander credited the offense behind him for helping him get back into a rhythm after the Acuña homer.
"Our offense did such a good job to give me so much breathing room that I was able to pound the strike zone, force them to put it in play," he said of the Mets' 21-hit, 12-run outburst. "Get ahead in some counts and punch guys out when I had a chance."
That run support allowed McLean to be pitch efficient and go seven innings. He walked four batters in his first start and didn't walk any on Friday and McLean was pleased overall with his execution, but admits there are still some things he wants to clean up. The Mets are definitely pleased with the results, especially the length McLean gave them.
He became the first Mets starter other than David Peterson to pitch six or more innings since June 7 (62 games). McLean was not aware of that mark but says he tries to treat every start the same.
"I’m just going out there trying to win," he said. "Every batter I face, I’m trying to get them out. Happen to go seven tonight, obviously last week was five and some change and I wanted to be better."
That also includes playing not only in a hostile environment but in his home territory. McLean is a North Carolina native and would go to Braves games and rooted for Atlanta as a kid. But that didn't bother McLean, who had family and friends in the stands on Friday night, and that's what has impressed Mendoza and the Mets so much. McLean's poise and demeanor on the mound.
"At this point, I don’t know what else to say about him," Mendoza said. "For him to go out there and compete and be himself is not easy to do. Goes to show you that this kid is special."