The Mets aren’t looking for Nolan McLean to be the savior of their starting staff.
When the prized pitching prospect makes his eagerly awaited MLB debut, manager Carlos Mendoza just wants McLean to do his part.
“I’m proud of him,” Mendoza said Friday. “Congratulated him. … The other thing I told him is, ‘Let’s just have fun. Have fun, and go out there and be yourself. We’re not expecting heroes here. Just go out there, be yourself and give us a chance to win a baseball game.’ He just smiled.”
McLean, 24, is set to start Saturday afternoon against the Seattle Mariners at Citi Field.
Armed with a mid-90s sinker, a four-seamer and his bread-and-butter sweeper, McLean went 5-4 with a 2.78 ERA in 16 appearances, including 13 starts, after being promoted to Triple-A Syracuse in May.
MLB Pipeline ranks the right-handed McLean as the No. 3 prospect — and the top pitcher — in the Mets’ system.
“The thing for me is just going out there and trusting my stuff, trying to enjoy the moment, and just compete with everything I’ve got,” McLean said Friday at Citi Field. “At the same time, I’ve been able to pick everybody’s brains here and get some experience, some opinions on other things.”
McLean joins a Mets rotation that entered Friday with a 5.30 ERA since June 13 and that was averaging 4.5 innings per start during that stretch.
He is replacing veteran right-hander Frankie Montas, who went 3-2 with a 6.38 ERA before the Mets decided this week to move him to the bullpen.
McLean acknowledged he wasn’t quite sure what to expect when he steps on an MLB mound for the first time, but Mendoza believes the moment will not be too big for him.
“The reports that we’re getting from people that have been around him are just the makeup, his ability to control situations, emotions, and just the way he carries himself,” Mendoza said. “He’s a competitor. I’m pretty sure there’s going to be [adrenaline]. First time out there, but I’m not concerned at all.”
The Mets also considered Triple-A right-hander Brandon Sproat — their No. 5 prospect — to fill Montas’ spot, but they chose McLean, who has 127 strikeouts in 113.2 minor-league innings this year.
McLean received the news from Triple-A Syracuse pitching coach A.J. Sager on Wednesday.
“Just [had] a big grin on my face,” McLean recalled. “Brandon said my face turned really, really red. I tried not to get emotional, and then I called my mom and she was crying. I got pretty emotional then. It was just a really exciting moment for me.”
The Mets selected McLean out of Oklahoma State with the No. 91 pick in the 2023 draft. McLean was a two-way player in college and to begin his minor-league career, but committed last summer to become a full-time pitcher.
Despite his steady rise through the Mets’ ranks, McLean said his call-up came as a surprise. He also called it “a dream come true.”
“Part of the game is just going out there and competing with what you’ve got,” McLean said. “My stuff’s not going to change from Syracuse to here, so I’ve got what I have, and I’m going to go out there [on Saturday] and try to do my best.”
BEATLEMANIA
Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto and Brandon Nimmo weren’t the only Fab 4 with a presence in Queens on Friday night.
The Mets hosted “Beatles night” to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison’s famed concert at Shea Stadium on Aug. 15, 1965.
Friday’s festivities included a pregame concert by 1964 The Tribute, while the first 15,000 fans received a replica model of Shea Stadium.
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