On Thursday night at Citi Field, Nolan McLean showcased his skills over six innings, giving up only two hits. The performance was impressive, especially against a lineup from Arizona that was otherwise fairly consistent.
Yet, for the Diamondbacks, Eduardo Rodriguez put in a solid showing as well. When McLean had a misstep in the seventh inning, Luke Weaver came in but struggled, leading to the Mets’ second consecutive loss, this time with a score of 7-1.
On a chilly evening in Queens, McLean’s pitching was the lone bright spot for the Mets.
Heading into the seventh, McLean had only faced two batters, but then he issued a leadoff walk to Gerardo Perdomo. While he managed to strike out Adrian Del Castillo—his eighth of the night—he then allowed a single to Jose Fernandez and exited after throwing a career-high 100 pitches.
Unfortunately, that’s when the bullpen and defense faltered, leading to the loss.
Weaver came into the game having allowed just one runner on third during five innings, but he faced a tough challenge when pinch hitter Gabriel Moreno hit a double over right field, tying the game. Rookie right fielder Brett Batty struggled to catch up, allowing the ball to bounce off the fence instead.
“I felt like I had read a lot and wanted to get back into it,” Batty remarked, mentioning it was his first experience in that situation. “I’m still working hard on wall ball… I think it’s tough, but I’ll do my best to make the catch. I might even crash into the wall if needed.” Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that.
Unfortunately for the Mets, Alec Thomas hit a grounder to first, and when Mark Vientos made a poor throw home, Fernandez scored, putting Arizona in the lead.
Tim Tawa followed up with a sacrifice fly, and Jorge Barosa added to the rally with a triple to right, extending the Diamondbacks’ lead to 4-1.
Weaver exited after this four-run inning to a chorus of boos.
Things took a turn for the worse for Luis Garcia, who allowed three runs in the eighth inning, allowing the Diamondbacks to pull away further.
The Mets’ batting lineup didn’t provide the pitching staff with much breathing room. Besides Luis Robert Jr.’s two-out solo home run in the first—his first earned run of the year off Rodriguez—the offense was mostly silent.
In the third inning, Bo Bichette hit a single, and Robert walked, raising hopes for a rally, but Vientos’ liner was caught by second baseman Ketel Marte.
Another potential rally faded in the fifth when Tyrone Taylor started with a double and advanced to third on Francisco Lindor’s groundout. After Bichette walked, Rodriguez managed to get Robert to strike out, and Vientos grounded out to third, leaving the game still tight.
With a strong relief corps ready to pitch in the seventh, the Mets held the lead—only for Weaver and Garcia to allow five runs and record just three outs.
Weaver reflected on the tough loss, noting how disappointing it was, especially after McLean’s strong outing. “That made it sting a bit more. He earned that win,” he said.
