There’s a new star in town
Nolan McLean continues to amaze. Plus, the Mets look like they could be back for real...
What’s up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets stayed red-hot to shutout the Phillies 6-0 and complete an emphatic sweep at Citi Field on Wednesday night (box)
RHP Nolan McLean was terrific once again, allowing just four hits in eight scoreless innings with no walks and six strikeouts
LHP Brooks Raley came in for the ninth and shut it down, allowing just one hit and no walks with one strikeout
SS Francisco Lindor, RF Juan Soto, and 1B Pete Alonso all hit consecutive RBI singles in the bottom of the third as New York once again built an early lead
3B Mark Vientos led the way with a 2-for-4 night and three RBIs, including hitting a two-run homer in the seventh that sealed the win in style
The Mets continue to have success with RISP, going 5-for-8 on Wednesday night
Roster Moves 📰
RHP Kevin Herget recalled from Triple-A Syracuse
RHP Huascar Brazobán optioned to Triple-A Syracuse
Injury Updates 🏥
C Francisco Álvarez (thumb sprain) left in the sixth inning of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse after getting hit by pitch on the pinky of his left hand. He will be evaluated further
OF Jesse Winker (back discomfort) started a rehab assignment with Low-A St. Lucie on Wednesday, finishing hitless in two at-bats
CF Jose Siri (fractured tibia) also began a rehab assignment with Low-A St. Lucie, playing five innings and reaching base twice
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
Listen to this week’s Just Mets Podcast as Rich MacLeod is joined by super fan and YouTuber Tyler Ward, host of the WardyNYM show. They react to the Mets disappointing road trip and the road ahead as they look to make a dent in the race to win the NL East…
Playoff Race 🏁
The postseason picture is all of a sudden looking a lot brighter for the Mets. Thanks to sweeping the Phillies, New York has now closed to within four games of Philadelphia for the NL East lead.
Plus, by winning on Wednesday, the Mets have now also clinched the season series and the standings tiebreaker over the Phillies. Given how close this pennant race is again, that could be crucial come the end of the regular season.
Furthermore, the Mets now have a 4.5 game lead over the Reds for the final Wild Card spot in the National League after Cincinnati was swept by the Dodgers on Wednesday.
The Mets have also made some ground on the Padres and the Cubs, who currently occupy the top two Wild Card berths.
The Mets now have a 96.7% chance of making the 2025 playoffs, per FanGraphs:
Stats of the Day 📊
RHP Nolan McLean became the first pitcher in Mets franchise history to win his first three career starts
McLean also became the eighth pitcher in franchise history to have multiple outings of at least seven innings within his first three career games
The Mets have now beaten the Phillies 10 straight times at Citi Field following the series sweep this week - tying the franchise record from June 20, 1984 - August, 13, 1985
Who’s Hot? 🥵
RHP Nolan McLean has allowed just two earned runs over 20.1 innings across his first three career starts while striking out 21 - he currently owns a stellar 0.89 ERA
The Mets finished this series against the Phillies 21-for-37 with runners in scoring position
The Mets have now scored 140 runs in the month of August; it’s their highest-scoring month of the season. They’ve scored over 30 more runs in August than they did in July
3B Mark Vientos is hitting .407/.467/.963/.1.430 with four homers, three doubles, and 11 RBIs over his last seven games - he also extended his current hit streak to 10 games
SS Francisco Lindor is hitting .431/.476/.707/.1.183 with four homers, nine RBIs, and six stolen bases over his last 13 games
2B / 3B Brett Baty is hitting .348/.400/.435/.835 over his last seven games
LF Brandon Nimmo is hitting .385/.400/.385/.785 with three RBIs over his last four games
Play of the Game ⭐️
Now that’s what we’ve been waiting for.
The offense has been operating at the peak of its powers as of late, and we got a tantalizing glimpse of how dangerous this lineup can be on Wednesday night.
The Mets strung together five consecutive hits in the bottom of the third inning, culminating in Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Pete Alonso hitting three straight RBI singles.
Alonso’s knock to drive in Lindor made it a 3-0 game and, with Nolan McLean dominating on the mound, that was enough to set the Mets on the way.
That entire third inning set the tone for the rest of the game, and Alonso’s clutch hit acted as the first real knockout punch of the game.
Down on the Farm 🌾
3B Jacob Reimer (No. 6 prospect, Double-A): 2-for-4, HR, 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored, 1 K
3B Boston Baro (No. 21 prospect, High-A): 3-for-5, RBI, 2 runs scored, 1 K, 2 stolen bases
SS Colin Houck (High-A): 1-for-3, RBI, run scored, BB, 1 K, stolen base
BOX SCORES
Single-A STL | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓️
Match-up: Mets (72-61) vs. Marlins (62-71)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP Clay Holmes (11-6, 3.60 ERA) vs. TBD
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY | MLBN (out-of-market only)
A star is born! ✍️
Wednesday night was special.
Once the history of the 2025 Mets is told, it could go down as a defining, changing night too.
Because, for those at Citi Field and those watching on TV, Wednesday night was the night the Mets officially got their mojo back, and Mets fans were allowed to hope and dream once more.
Dare I say it, but the Mets look officially back.
And that’s in large part thanks to the new star attraction in town…
Nolan McLean.
It is no coincidence that on the same night McLean continued to show why he could be this team’s future ace, the Mets continued to surge in the right direction while showcasing all the attributes that could make them a legitimate World Series contender.
With a burgeoning star in McLean now leading the way, something just feels different about this Mets team.
Everything just seems to be clicking at the perfect time, and some of the magic that engulfed the lovable 2024 team seems to have found its way to the 2025 vintage.
All in all, the hunt for the 2025 World Series seems to be fully back on.
Given what we witnessed on Wednesday, that isn’t hyperbole, either.
It feels strange to declare McLean a true stud in the making just three games into his Major League career, but he hardly looks like a rookie out there.
In fact, he looked the exact opposite in the series finale. He resembled a grizzled, well-seasoned, well-established 10-year veteran as he mowed through the Phillies lineup with absolute ease. He retired 15 straight batters at one point, all while leaving some very experienced hitters looking absolutely perplexed at the plate.
McLean used all four of his pitches to maximum effect, creating magic every time the ball left his pitching hand. He has already mastered the art of doing the most with the least - needing just 49 pitches by the time the fifth inning had arrived.
McLean was also still flashing 96mph as he pitched into the eighth inning - giving his team the kind of big-time performance on the mound they’ve been missing - and craving - all year.
He left his new arena having mesmerized those inside Citi Field, eliciting special memories of when Matt Harvey first burst onto the scene. And, as was the case with Harvey, watching a McLean start is already becoming must-watch viewing.
Now the first pitcher in franchise history to win his first three career starts, McLean is also doing the unthinkable by dragging this team out of despair and into a new and exciting immediate future. The Mets are 8-3 since McLean’s debut. That followed a stretch of dropping 14 out of 16 games prior to his arrival.
There is no denying that Mets fans have a new hero to get excited about and fully get behind. McLean has ridden into Queens on his white horse and, so far anyway, has done a pretty great stellar job of saving the season.
Hope is firmly in the air thanks to McLean, who is delivering boatloads of energy and promise to Citi Field.
It helps too that the offense finally looks like the unstoppable, all-conquering force we all thought it would be back in spring training. The big three - Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Pete Alonso - hit three consecutive RBI singles in the third to set the tone. In doing so, they also flashed just how dangerous and efficient the top of the lineup can be when everyone is clicking and operating at the peak of their powers. Mark Vientos also stayed red-hot with two monster hits to effectively seal the game.
Every single player in that lineup is now contributing on a nightly basis, helping to make this lineup a deep and formidable threat. And the results are there for all to see. Entering Wednesday’s game, the Mets led all of baseball with a .358 batting average in August.
Now firmly back in the NL East race, and having put some daylight between them and the Reds for the final Wild Card spot, the Mets are hitting their stride at the right time.
And, with a new rising star in McLean, who is rapidly taking over Queens with every jaw-dropping start, the Mets suddenly look like a powerhouse once again.
The Mets may well be back. And, with another top pitching prospect in Jonah Tong set to make his MLB debut on Friday, we could be set for a really thrilling couple of months.
Who thought we would be saying that just a few weeks ago?!
Around the League 🚩
RHP Shohei Ohtani recorded his first win as a Dodger after striking out nine and allowing just one run over five innings to help sweep the Reds in LA
Pirates rookie RHP Bubba Chandler earned his first career MLB win after throwing four scoreless innings in relief in a 2-1 win over the Cardinals
The Yankees - led by OF Aaron Judge’s two-run homer - scored nine runs and hit four homers in the top of the third inning in an 11-2 rout of the Nationals
Rookie RHP Luis Morales tossed seven scoreless innings with seven strikeouts to help the A’s sweep the first-place Tigers
CF Ceddanne Rafaela hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the ninth to help the Red Sox beat the Orioles, 3-2
What I am most impressed about by McLean is his aggressiveness in pounding the strike zone, keeping his pitches down. It puts the other team on its heels, and provides some energy to a Mets team that has been known to be a little slow getting goiing. Must be something about the first name Nolan for a Mets prospect pitcher.
There are a couple things to love about Nolan McLean. Obviously, he has great stuff, and he knows how to use it. He threw six different pitches last night at least 10 percent of the time.
He goes after hitters, too. He doesn't nibble. He attacks. And boy howdy, did we ever need that on the mound. I don't know what Hef has been telling these guys, but whatever it is, it hasn't been working. We've been scared of the bat.
Nolan ain't scared of nothin', and that's the best thing about him. He's competing all the time. If he throws a non-competitive pitch, he gets pissed at himself and locks in and gets the next one right. Pitch by pitch by pitch, he's competing.
That's the shot in the arm he's given us. McLean got his first start on Aug. 16 after we had dropped three straight and were hanging on to the last Wild Card spot by our fingernails. Since then, we're 8-3 and ballin' again.
Why? Starting pitching. Holmes and Peterson followed McLean with solid starts on Aug. 17 and 18, respectively, and just like that we were back on track.
So, let's have more of the Old School, fellas: work fast, change speeds, throw strikes. Get after 'em and let's keep building the mo' and get on the hunt.