Nolan McLean Worries Starting to Brew for Mets After Latest Outing

This is the first rough stretch of his Major League career

May 25, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; Cincinnati Reds left fielder JJ Bleday (22) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against New York Mets starting pitcher Nolan McLean (26) during the third inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Fresh off the worst outing (nine total runs, six earned) of his young career last week against the Nationals, the Mets hoped to see Nolan McLean move on from his first true rough game and rebound. But on Monday, the Reds made sure that he had another difficult performance.

McLean set down the side relatively easily in the first inning, yet that was about all that was easy for him. McLean worked the bases loaded in his second inning of work, and would walk away in a somewhat favorable position with only two runs allowed.

He was not helped out by his defense as Bo Bichette glove-flipped a routine double play ball that prolonged the inning and allowed an extra run to score. In the third, he let up a tape-measure homer to left fielder JJ Bleday, the third HR allowed by the Mets' rookie in his last two starts.

It would all come off the rails for McLean in the fourth inning: Spencer Steer singled in a pair of runners after a hit-by-pitch and broken-bat double before him, and Tyler Stephenson would bring him around with a fourth homer allowed by McLean in two games.

Two straight awful starts from the Mets' young ace have question marks popping up all around him as he falls apart at a time when the Mets have no room for error.

Nolan McLean turned in a second straight terrible start, raising questions around his status as future ace of the Mets

May has been brutal for New York's top rookie, with now a 6.92 ERA over five starts this month, but possibly the most staggering stat is how many long balls he has given up. McLean has allowed six homers this month, averaging roughly one long ball every four innings of work.

This comes after allowing one homer in his season debut against the Pirates and then one in all of April. If he can't find a way to limit the homers, these awful marks might not be behind him yet.

The Mets' pitching has been just about the only positive on this awful season so far, as the likes of McLean, Jonah Tong, Christian Scott, and Freddy Peralta have given fans a reason to tune into games while their offense struggles to take the bats off their shoulders. McLean's performances were starting to be slightly Jacob deGrom-ian with his lack of run support despite dazzling outings, but he has done himself zero favors over the past few starts.

The Mets came into the season hoping that McLean could serve as a sort of 1B to right-hander Freddy Peralta's 1A at the top of the rotation, but the past two starts have done a lot of damage to McLean's campaign.

It is worth noting that he finished just one out shy of not being eligible for MLB's Prospect Promotion Incentive (PPI) plan, meaning that if he wins the Rookie of the Year award, the Mets receive an additional first-round selection. With the way he has pitched the last two outings, McLean might be closer to a skipped start or a reset than he is to the Rookie of the Year.

McLean was a major piece of the Mets' plans this year and is an even bigger piece for beyond. New York needs him to work through these troubling times as quickly as possible, and the 2026 team needs him to right the ship for his next outing.