Mets sweep Phillies behind Nolan McLean's historic night

The eighth inning threatened to unravel, but McLean showed the composure of a veteran. After allowing back-to-back singles to open the frame, McLean bore down like a seasoned veteran, inducing two harmless flyouts before cleanly fielding a dribbler off the bat of Harrison Bader and firing to first for the final out. Citi Field erupted, knowing they were watching the emergence of something special.

What McLean has done is unlike anything any other Mets pitcher has done in their first three starts. In a franchise rich with pitching history, McLean’s opening act has outshined even the debuts of Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden, and Jacob deGrom.

The Mets backed up McLean’s brilliance with timely offense, piling up 12 more hits to continue what has been the hottest lineup in baseball over the last couple of weeks. Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto, and Pete Alonso each chipped in with RBI singles of their own, but the biggest offensive spark came from the continued resurgence of Mark Vientos.

Vientos had two more hits Wednesday, including a monstrous two-run homer in the seventh inning that put the game out of reach. His turnaround at the plate has completely revitalized the Mets’ offense, giving the lineup a dangerous depth and balance it lacked earlier in the season.

With the sweep, the Mets trimmed what was once a seven-game deficit down to just four games behind the Phillies in the NL East. What looked like a runaway division race only a week ago suddenly feels wide open, especially with four more head-to-head matchups between these rivals still looming in September.

The Mets carry their momentum into a four-game series against the Miami Marlins, who come to Citi Field this weekend. That series will also mark the highly anticipated debut of another rookie: Jonah Tong, the strikeout leader in all of minor league baseball, is scheduled to make his first major league start on Friday.

If Tong can provide even a fraction of the instant impact McLean has, the Mets’ rotation could soon look entirely different — but for now, the spotlight belongs to Nolan McLean, whose historic start has already rewritten the Mets’ rookie record books.