ARLINGTON — Nolan McLean wrote the last lines on his NL Rookie of the Year resume Wednesday night, giving the Mets as dominant a start as they could have asked for, even without his best stuff.
The rookie right-hander capped a stellar season with a seven-inning performance against the Texas Rangers. The Mets were unable to give him much run support, but his overall body of work speaks for itself.
“I don’t think that was like his vintage stuff, and he still found a way to be really, really good,” manager Andy Green said after a 7-2 win at Globe Life Field. “His velo was down a little bit down today, [but it was] the last outing of a long season that started at the WBC, and I felt he competed incredibly well today.”
Marcus Semien homered against his former team in the top of the eighth to help to break a tie and put the Mets ahead for good, and Brett Baty capped the win with a pinch-hit grand slam in the top of the ninth to help the Mets cement a series win. It’s a blow to the Rangers, who are 3.0 games out of the AL Wild Card standings and came into the game tied with the Houston Astros at the top of the AL West.
“Go-ahead home run in the eighth inning was a good feeling, especially after having nine at-bats where I felt good, but wasn’t getting any results in the series,” Semien said. “I played here four years. Obviously, one was top of the mountain, and three were up and down, but I really did enjoy playing here.”
What the Rangers go on to do after the Mets leave town doesn’t matter to the visitors. What matters is another win, more progress made, and McLean’s Rookie of the Year case.
McLean finishes the season with a 3.16 ERA over 31 starts. He didn’t miss a single one, which speaks to his durability, and he pitched 179 2/3 innings, tied for the 11th-most of all starters.
A starting pitcher used to be expected to make 30 starts and pitch 200 innings annually, but only two pitchers will reach that innings threshold this season: Miami’s Sandy Alcantara and Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez. The only rookie starter who logged more innings than McLean is Cleveland’s Parker Messick. McLean went at least six innings in 15 of his last 17 starts, and allowed two runs or fewer in 17 of his last 19.
“I think the biggest thing is just not missing the start,” McLean said. “I try to take pride in going out there and competing every single time, whether I have my stuff or not. That’s what matters most to me is going out there and making each start.”
The 25-year-old ranks among the top 10 in the National League in opponent average, strikeouts and ERA. He struck out 194 hitters with his array of spinning pitches, the most among all qualified rookies.
Against the Rangers, he no-hit the lineup through the first four innings before giving up a leadoff single to Brandon Nimmo in the fifth. Two batters later, Jake Burger hit an RBI single to left to score the former Mets outfielder and cut the Mets’ lead to 2-1. The bottom of the order gave McLean trouble, and he was nearly out of a bases-loaded jam with a double play, but No. 9 hitter Evan Carter beat the throw to first base, allowing the tying run to score.
He got Wyatt Langford to pop one up in the infield for the third out.
“Those guys were aggressive, so anytime a team is aggressive like that, and you’re filling up the strike zone, you’re relying a lot on your defense, and sometimes they just don’t hit it at guys,” McLean said. “In the fifth inning, they hit a few balls away from people, and that’s part of it. So I was just kind of trusting my stuff, [trusting] that they’re eventually going to hit it at people to try to minimize [damage]. And if I get to two strikes, I’ll execute a pitch and punch them out.”
Then, he recovered in the sixth, retiring the side in order, and did the same in the seventh. McLean held Texas to two earned runs on three hits, walked one and struck out five.
“Going back out in the sixth, it’s making sure I’m keeping that same game plan,” he said. “And not necessarily getting tentative just because they put a few balls in play.”
His ability to recover might be the most impressive aspect of his season. There were entire outings where he felt as though he didn’t have his best stuff, and went to other pitches he typically only uses in specific situations instead. You’d never know he was struggling by looking at the scoreboard.
“I don’t know about the rookie of the year conversation, but he’s the best rookie pitcher in the National League,” Green said. “I think that’s pretty obvious to everybody.”
Juan Soto hit his 27th homer of the season in the third inning off left-hander Cody Bradford, who went 4 1/3 innings, and struck out one. Semien hit his 15th of the season, and Baty’s grand slam came off former Mets right-hander Trevor Williams for his 11th of the year.