Category: Baseball

David Peterson was the only arm out of the starting rotation the Mets could rely on to give the team length. 

Entering Wednesday's game against the Braves, Peterson had six consecutive starts where he went six innings (a career-high) and in 15 of his last 22 starts. That would not continue on Wednesday as Peterson's fourth-inning implosion led to nine runs and an eventual 11-6 loss. Of those nine runs, six were charged to Peterson thanks to walks and getting behind in counts.

"He lost the strike zone, missing a lot armside and the walks, especially when you’re walking the bottom of the lineup," manager Carlos Mendoza said of Peterson's fourth inning. "The inning started with four straight balls…they made him pay."

In the fourth, Peterson allowed four walks and two hits before being pulled for Reed Garrett. The right-handed reliever could not get out of the inning, as the Braves capped off the inning with a grand slam from Michael Harris II.

Peterson allowed six earned runs for the first time in a game since May 15, 2023, at Washington and for the sixth time in his 124 career outings. His 3.1 innings pitched also marked his shortest start since Aug. 4, 2023.

But starters have bad outings throughout a 162-game season, but this has become an epidemic for the Mets' starting rotation. With Peterson's short outing, the Mets starters have gone a full turn -- including Frankie Montas' bulk outing -- without going five innings. 

When asked why his starters haven't been able to give the team length, Mendoza pointed to one reason.

"When you look at the last couple of nights, we lost the strike zone," Mendoza said. "Pretty much with all of them, giving free passes. Teams are going to make you pay. Top of my head, that’s been the biggest thing for me. We haven’t been able to get a shutdown inning, especially when we get the lead like that. It’s frustrating."

"Yeah, it’s frustrating. We’re not holding up our end, and we need to do better," Peterson said of the rotation not giving length. "[Fixing it] starts with analyzing the performance and turning the page and moving on to the next one." 

The team has received only 594.1 innings from starters this season, which is 27th in the majors. Since June 13, they have been last in that category. 

"We got the coaches looking at pretty much everything, trying to figure it out," Mendoza said of this stretch of losses for the Mets. "How can we continue to help these guys, especially the guys from the rotation. We know the talent’s there, we just haven’t been able to get much from them, especially this last time through. Not easy, but understanding, we have to keep going."

The Mets will look to win their series with the Braves on Thursday before hosting the Mariners over the weekend. Pitching prospect Nolan McLean will start Saturday's game, and perhaps the youthful arm can give the team the length from the rotation they are desperate for.

The result was historic. The way it happened was all too familiar.

Never before, since interleague play began in 1997, had the Dodgers been swept in a six-game season series against the Angels.

But plenty of times in recent weeks had they suffered the kind of fate that befell them Wednesday.

Entering the eighth inning, the team was leading by one run. Without many trustworthy options in a recently scuffling bullpen, however, manager Dave Roberts had few cards to play from his deck.

First, he sent left-hander Justin Wrobleski out for a third inning of work. When he walked the first two batters, Roberts turned to right-hander Edgardo Henriquez, who had pitched multiple innings the night before.

You can probably guess what happened next.

Despite perfectly defending a sacrifice bunt to get the lead runner at third, the Dodgers again failed to escape a late-game threat. With one out, Jo Adell hit what looked like a possible double-play grounder — only for Henriquez to deflect the ball on an ill-advised fielding attempt and send it rolling away for an infield single.

Two batters later, Logan O’Hoppe roped a go-ahead, two-out base hit into center.

Read more:Shaikin: Will Smith could win a batting title. Could the Dodgers stop him?

Another lead had been squandered by the bullpen. Another loss — the Dodgers’ fourth straight, and 21st in their last 33 games — had been all but cemented.

With a 6-5 defeat, the Dodgers were swept for the second time this season by the Angels. They also fell out of first place in the National League West for the first time since April.

It was yet another day they could only shake their head.

Wednesday was supposed to be about Shohei Ohtani, who was making his first pitching start as a visitor at his old home ballpark at Angel Stadium.

It was also Ohtani’s first full-length outing since returning from a second career Tommy John surgery earlier this year. But even the two-way star could only conjure so much magic.

After building up inning by inning since his return to pitching, Ohtani’s leash was extended into the fifth for the first time this season — a target length the Dodgers don’t plan on having him surpass at least until the playoffs.

“He’s just such a valuable player to us offensively, as a pitcher,” Roberts said. “So to push for an extra inning, or call it five extra innings in totality, it’s just not worth it. There’s just way too much downside.”

Read more:After one year, this MLB postseason schedule innovation is no longer

And by the time Ohtani took the mound for the first time, he’d already helped the Dodgers take an early lead, beginning the game with a scorching line-drive triple before Mookie Betts singled him home and Will Smith went deep to make a three-run first inning.

The two-way star gave up two runs in the second, one on a Taylor Ward home run, then another after Yoán Moncada doubled and came around to score on a sacrifice fly, but the Dodgers restored their three-run advantage with a two-run rally in the fourth; one that featured three walks (including one from Ohtani and a run-scoring free pass from Smith) and an RBI single from Betts (who extended his hitting streak to eight games, five of which have been multi-hit efforts).

Ohtani’s first foray into the fifth inning didn’t go smoothly. O’Hoppe and Bryce Teodosio hit consecutive one-out singles. Zach Neto laced a two-run double into the left-field corner that kicked away from Alex Call. And with his pitch count up to a season-high of 80, Roberts went to get him before he could qualify for the win.

Reliever Anthony Banda escaped the inning without further damage. Ohtani’s final line was 4 1/3 innings, four runs, five hits and seven strikeouts (two of them against former Angels co-star Mike Trout). His season ERA is now 3.47. He has 32 strikeouts in 23⅔ innings.

And for a while, it appeared the score would remain that way — until yet another late-game collapse sent the Dodgers to another maddening setback.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone announced after the team's loss to the Twins on Wednesday night that first baseman Paul Goldschmidt has a knee injury and could go on the IL ahead of the team's weekend series against the Cardinals.

Goldschmidt did not start the 4-1 loss to Minnesota, but questions about the former NL MVP's availability were raised in the postgame when Boone didn't pinch-hit him for the struggling Austin Wells against a left-hander in an RBI opportunity. 

Goldschmidt seemingly injured his right knee catching a pop-up in Tuesday's game while making a turn around first base. He has undergone tests and the teams said it's a low-grade knee sprain with inflammation. Goldschmidt said he hopes it's a short-term absence and that he can avoid the IL.

The right-handed slugger is in his first year with the Yankees after signing a one-year deal in the offseason. The 37-year-old is having a solid season in the Bronx, slashing .276/.331/.506 with an OPS of .753 to go along with 10 home runs and 40 RBI. 

The season-long lack of length from starters haunted the Mets once again on Wednesday night, as an early six-run lead was astonishingly wasted in a rain-soaked 11-6 loss to the Braves at Citi Field.

Here are the takeaways...

-- The Mets' red-hot bats weren't bothered by the 95-minute delay to first pitch. A first-inning leadoff double from Francisco Lindor and a pair of walks from Juan Soto and Brandon Nimmo set the bases loaded for Pete Alonso, who ripped a sinker off Carlos Carrasco to center for a two-run single. The knock from Alonso increased his RBI total to 98, tied for the highest mark in MLB. Their lead increased to 3-0 moments later, when Nimmo scored on a sac fly to right from Cedric Mullins. The Braves challenged Nimmo's tag-up, but replay review confirmed that he left third base on time.

-- Further damage was inflicted on the former Mets starter in the second, as Soto followed up a one-out single from Lindor with a towering two-run homer to center that made the score 5-0. The 407-foot blast was No. 29 on the year for Soto, and the ball was skillfully caught by a young fan seated in the front row next to the Home Run Apple. The woes didn't end there for Carrasco, either -- the veteran right-hander proceeded to allow doubles to Nimmo and Jeff McNeil, and he needed a whopping 67 pitches to record only six outs. He didn't return for the third inning.

-- The six-run cushion was appreciated by Mets starter David Peterson, who retired six of the first seven batters, but the left-hander struggled mightily to maintain any sort of groove. After narrowly escaping a bases-loaded jam in the third, the Braves tormented Peterson in the fourth with a debilitating five-run rally that included four walks and a three-run double from Jurickson Profar. The Mets mercifully pulled Peterson at 80 pitches with a two-run lead and one out in the frame, but his ERA continued to rise while he watched from the dugout.

--  Reed Garrett entered in relief and gave up a full-count RBI single to Marcell Ozuna that cut the Mets' lead 6-5 -- the fifth run charged to Peterson -- and then with the bases juiced once again, Michael Harris II smacked a two-out grand slam to dead center that stunningly placed the Braves ahead, 9-6. The nine-run implosion was the Mets' worst inning since April 2019, when they allowed 10 first-inning runs to the Phillies, and the fans who endured the hour-plus rain delay made sure their boos were amplified.

-- The Mets' misfortune appeared on the basepaths in the bottom half of the fourth. With two on and two out, a single to right from Starling Marte was all for naught when a heads-up throw from outfielder Eli White to catcher Sean Murphy nabbed a head-first sliding Alonso at home for the third out. But back to the top-half meltdown -- since June 13, the Mets rank dead last in the majors in innings pitched by their starters (h/t Anthony DiComo). Peterson's season ERA jumped from 2.98 to 3.30 (23 starts).

-- Paul Blackburn was activated off the injured list on Wednesday in a new bullpen role, and it didn't take long for the Mets to assign the veteran right-hander bulk relief duty. While his first inning of work in the fifth was blemish-free, he allowed a leadoff walk in the sixth and then served up a two-run homer to Ozuna that bumped the Braves' lead to 11-6. Blackburn turned into an effective mop-up arm from there, however, retiring 12 straight in what became a five-inning appearance that included three strikeouts (61 pitches).

-- In spite of Carrasco's mess, the Braves' bullpen stepped up to patchwork the rest of the game, beginning in the third inning. Five relievers combined to produce seven scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, and from the sixth inning on, the Mets saw just one runner advance into scoring position.

Game MVP: Michael Harris II

Harris' two-out grand slam in a nine-run fourth inning pushed the Braves ahead, and for the first time in Mets history, they've blown a four-plus run lead in three straight games (h/t Gary Cohen).

Highlights

Pete Alonso has tied Cal Raleigh for the MLB lead in RBI (98) pic.twitter.com/uIPVaEyWn1

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 14, 2025

Brandon Nimmo slides home safely on Cedric Mullins’ sac fly! pic.twitter.com/Jh2WBvZUGz

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 14, 2025

Juan Soto goes yard! pic.twitter.com/h6wWhybUFa

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 14, 2025

An RBI double for Jeff McNeil! pic.twitter.com/X8ysBk5JY3

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 14, 2025

What's next

The Mets (64-56) will play their rubber game against the Braves on Thursday night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. on SNY.

RHP Kodai Senga (7-4, 2.30 ERA) is slated to take the mound, opposite RHP Bryce Elder (4-9, 6.12 ERA).

The Yankees had just five hits in their 4-1 loss to the Twins on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.

The game started after a rain delay of one hour and 52 minutes, and the offense never appeared. New York failed to complete the three-game sweep and couldn't take advantage of losses in the AL Wild Card scene. The Yankees remain 1.0 game ahead of the Cleveland Guardians.

Here are the takeaways...

-Against Joe Ryan, the Yankees would have their work cut out for them. They would have an opportunity to score early when Trent Grisham singled to lead off the first and advanced to second on a passed ball, but Aaron Judge (strikeout), Cody Bellinger (flyout) and Giancarlo Stanton (flyout to the warning track) allowed the Twins ace to escape trouble. 

Ryan would pitch into the third inning without much doing until Bellinger took the right-hander deep to the second deck in right field to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead.

The Yankees wouldn't get much else off of Ryan until the seventh, when Anthony Volpe reached on a one-out double. After moving to third on a Ryan McMahon groundout, Ryan was lifted for a reliever. Volpe was stranded on third base when Austin Wells -- who wasn't pinch-hit for with Paul Goldschmidt -- struck out looking.

It was revealed after the game that Goldschmidt is dealing with a knee sprain and could land on the IL.

Wells, starting behind the plate for the first time in this series, finished 0-for-3. Ben Rice started at first base and went 1-for-4. After picking up four hits on Tuesday, Stanton went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.

-Cam Schlittler matched Ryan pitch for pitch, getting through the first three innings without allowing a baserunner. The Twins would get to the young right-hander in the fourth. A walk and double put Schlittler in a bind with no outs, and Luke Keaschall's RBI groundout knotted the game up and moved Byron Buxton to third base with one out. Schlittler bounced back by striking out Kody Clemens and, after a walk, getting Matt Wallner to fly out to end the inning.

Schlittler would pitch five strong innings, but the Twins made him work and the young righty would not go further in this one. 

He threw 86 pitches (55 strikes) through those five innings, allowing one run on two hits and two walks while striking out six batters.

-The Yankees bullpen had to do the heavy lifting on Wednesday, with Yerry De Los Santos the first one out of the pen. He allowed back-to-back infield singles to lead off the sixth before Clemens lined a double in the gap and reached third on a fielding error by Grisham to give the Twins a 3-1 lead. De Los Santos would not get an out in the sixth before Aaron Boone went to Mark Leiter Jr. 

Leiter got two infield pop outs and was one out away from allowing another run, but Royce Lewis stuck his bat out and lofted a double near the left field line to give Minnesota a 4-1 lead.

Devin Williams pitched a 1-2-3 seventh inning with a strikeout. It's Williams' second consecutive clean inning since being demoted to low-leverage situations. 

Camilo Doval and Brent Headrick combined to get the final two innings without allowing a run.

Game MVP: Joe Ryan

The Twins' ace showed why he leads the rotation, keeping the Yankees off the bases and off the board.

Highlights

Cody Bellinger visits the second deck! 💣 pic.twitter.com/1Y89kf4eTo

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) August 14, 2025

What's next

The Yankees have an off day on Thursday before heading to St. Louis to take on the Cardinals for a three-game set starting on Friday. First pitch is set for 8:15 p.m.

Luis Gil (0-1, 7.27 ERA) will take the mound for his third start of the season, while the Cardinals will send Andre Pallante (6-9, 4.95 ERA) to oppose him.

SNY's Joe DeMayo answers your Mets prospect questions...

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From James (@j4m35p4lmtr33 on X): How many of the Mets top 5 prospects do you think can make the Opening Day roster in 2026?

For reference, the top five I will be referencing comes from my midseason top 30 update. Mets No. 4 prospect Nolan McLean is slated to make his major league debut on Saturday, according to SNY’s Andy Martino.

It is an exciting time for the Mets, as the top six prospects in their system are now all at the Triple-A level, making them just one stop away from the big leagues.

With that said, without accounting for injuries, etc., it is hard to envision the Mets carrying more than two of these prospects come Opening Day 2026. More likely just one. I look at No. 1 prospect Jett Williams and No. 2 prospect Jonah Tong as options during the 2026 season, but probably not right out of the gate.

My No. 3 prospect, Carson Benge, has had a meteoric rise through the Mets' system in his first professional season, hitting .308 with a .926 OPS with 24 doubles, 12 home runs and 60 RBI in 93 games between High-A Brooklyn, Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse. 

The Mets are continuing to develop Benge as a center fielder, and he has made strides as the season has worn on.

With center field being unsettled beyond 2025, there is at least a chance that Benge could push for an Opening Day spot if he performs both offensively and defensively at the Triple-A level and shows growth in spring training next year.

I believe the Mets would very much want one of McLean and No. 5 prospect Brandon Sproat to be a part of the Opening Day 2026 rotation. Unless their plan is to go with a six-man staff out of the gate, it may be a competition for one spot, if they don’t fill that externally via a veteran trade or the free agent market. 

The Mets have Kodai Senga, Sean Manaea, David Peterson and a second year of Clay Holmes as a starter under contract.

Whether these young players are on the Opening Day roster or not, 2026 is shaping up to be a big year for the Mets, as far as invigorating high-end young talent into what is already a strong roster.

From Noel Eisenberg (@NoelEisenberg on X): Marco Vargas came to the Mets as a helium prospect. How would you characterize him now? Is there anyone else in the organization you’d currently call a helium prospect?

Marco Vargas was acquired from the Marlins in the David Robertson trade at the 2023 trade deadline, when he was one of the most impressive prospects in the Florida Complex League. He quickly rose as a top 10 prospect in the Mets' system. That’s the helium that Noel speaks of.

Since then, Vargas missed most of 2024 with injury, and 2025 has been an up-and-down season. At this point, most believe he projects as more of a backup infielder if his hit tool can carry him through the upper minors.

As far as current prospects with helium, that list must be topped by outfielder A.J. Ewing, who went from unranked in the preseason top 30 to making it all the way to No. 9  in the system. Ewing was just promoted to Double-A Binghamton after he hit .288 with a .775 OPS with 44 stolen bases in 78 games for High-A Brooklyn. 

He is a plus athlete who thrives in his pitch recognition skills and swing decisions. He can stand for some physical maturation to impact the baseball more, but with his speed, he can thrive as a gap-to-gap line drive hitter and utilizing his wheels.

Another name worth mentioning is No. 14 prospect, right-hander Will Watson. The Mets took Watson in the seventh round of the 2024 MLB Draft out of USC. In 93 innings to start his pro career, split between Low-A St. Lucie and High-A Brooklyn, he has a 2.71 ERA with 109 strikeouts. 

Watson's velocity has ticked up in pro ball -- he’s now sitting 94-95 mph and touching 97. He will need to continue to refine his command, but this has the early signs of another Mets pitching development win.

Kyle Harrison making progress as depth rotation option for Red Sox originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Red Sox acquired four players from the Giants when they traded Rafael Devers to the West Coast.

One of those players has already been traded away. Another one has a 6.23 ERA in 14 appearances out of Boston’s bullpen. And one is still in rookie ball.

There is still hope for the fourth to make a positive contribution in 2025.

That player would be Kyle Harrison, the left-handed starting pitcher who on Wednesday completed his sixth consecutive start allowing two or fewer runs for the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox.

Facing the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate in Iowa on Wednesday, Harrison pitched five shutout innings, allowing just one hit with eight strikeouts and four walks in what was eventually a 1-0 loss for Worcester.

It was the latest outing in what’s been a strong turnaround following a rocky start with Worcester. After the cross-country trade, Harrison allowed 11 earned runs in 13 innings over his first three starts with the WooSox, giving him a 7.62 ERA. That came after Harrison posted a 3.46 ERA in six Triple-A starts for Sacramento this year.

Since then, though, Harrison has allowed just five earned runs over 28 1/3 innings, good for a clean 1.59 ERA over those six starts.

Harrison, who had a 4.56 ERA in eight appearances (four starts) at the major league level this season with San Francisco, is now 4-2 with a 3.48 ERA in 15 starts in Triple-A this year. He has not had tremendous length, averaging a bit more than 4 1/3 innings pitched per start in the minors. He’s also struggled a bit with command, issuing six walks in one outing on July 27 and averaging 2.7 walks per start with Worcester.

But his recent effectiveness at keeping runs off the board could make him an option for the Red Sox to consider down the stretch in August and September.

“If needed, we believe he can do it here,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said prior to Wednesday night’s loss in Houston, according to The Boston Globe’s Tim Healey. “But right now, where we’re at, we feel comfortable with the guys that we have here. But he’s an option. … We’re deeper than people think. He’s part of it.”

Despite being without Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford and even Hunter Dobbins, Cora is able to have a reliable rotation at the moment. With Garrett Crochet as the clear-cut No. 1 and Brayan Bello as the No. 2, the Red Sox are currently riding Lucas Giolito, Walker Buehler and the recently acquired Dustin May to round out the rotation.

Yet with Buehler — who took the loss on Wednesday after allowing four runs over six innings — having a very up-and-down season, and with May already doubling his career-high in innings pitched this season, the Red Sox may very well need a few starts out of somewhere else in some high-stakes games down the stretch. While Cooper Criswell may get the first call, Harrison has made some significant strides to earning that chance with Boston.

The start of Wednesday's game between the Mets and Braves at Citi Field has been delayed due to weather in the area, the team announced.

A new first-pitch time of 8:45 p.m. is currently set.

The pre-game ceremony to honor Pete Alonso breaking Darryl Strawberry's Mets home run record was postponed to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.

David Peterson (7-5, 2.98 ERA) is the Mets' scheduled starter. For the Braves, it's former Met Carlos Carrasco (2-2, 6.18 ERA) as New York looks to build on Tuesday's historic night.

The victory snapped the team's seven-game losing streak.

After Wednesday's game, the Mets wrap up their series with the Braves on Thursday before hosting the Seattle Mariners this weekend.

Phillies' bats silent, defense poor in second straight loss to Reds originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

CINCINNATI – The fundamentally sound baseball that helped the Phillies win eight of 10 games recently abandoned them Wednesday at Great American Ballpark. That helped the Cincinnati Reds to an 8-0 win.

The Phillies’ bats didn’t help either as they stayed quiet for the second consecutive game with just three hits, 10 strikeouts and five men left on base. Monday, their lone run came on a Bryce Harper solo shot in the ninth inning in a 6-1 loss. There was a total of five runs scored by the Phillies this series.

Starter Cristopher Sánchez was cruising in the fourth with two out and nobody on before a two-out walk to Austin Hays and an RBI double by Noelvi Marte. After getting through an easy fifth, Sánchez unraveled in the sixth and gave up several hits behind him.

Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz singled with one out. After Sánchez got Miguel Andujar to pop out to second, Hays doubled down the left field line to score De La Cruz. Marte then singled to score Hays, and that’s when the Phillies turned into Little League imitators in the field.

Marsh scooped Marte’s single on two hops and made a strong throw home to J.T. Realmuto, who leaped to knock it down. Error on Marsh.

“The overthrow from Marsh, I understand it, Thomson said. “He’s trying to throw the guy out at the plate because that puts us down three and then we’re in a big hole. He was trying to throw it in the air and just threw it a little bit too high.”

Sánchez then picked it up and threw wildly to third, allowing Marte to score. Error on Sánchez. He was able to get the final out of the sixth but his night was over after allowing seven hits and three earned runs.

“On a personal note I think it was a bad start,” said Sánchez. “We lost the game. I always try to go out and have as many scoreless innings as I can to keep the team in the fight. Today just wasn’t the case.”

The Reds weren’t done after they chased Sánchez after 81 pitches. Jordan Romano came into the game in the seventh and gave up three hits and four runs, all coming on an Andujuar grand slam to left.

Oddly, the Reds scored all their runs in the game with two outs.

“We got to get the (bats) going, but we faced pretty good pitching on this trip,” said Rob Thomson. “But we got to find a way to beat good pitching.”

Cincinnati started Hunter Greene, a pitcher who hadn’t thrown in the big leagues since June 3 due to a groin injury. He also didn’t impress much in his rehab as in four minor league starts he allowed 10 hits, nine earned runs and four home runs in 13 innings. But he stymied the Phils by allowing no runs and just three hits in his six innings. He also struck out six.

“Power stuff,” said Thomson. “He had power fastball, power slider, then he broke out the split. He had really good stuff. He was on today. He was throwing strikes.”

A ten-game road trip through three cities started so promising, with a combined three-game sweep against the Texas Rangers then a win against the Reds in the series-opener. Perhaps a four-game visit to the lowly Washington Nationals will be just the remedy the team needs.

Plus, there could be reinforcement coming in the shape of Aaron Nola. He seems ready to return to the team on Sunday. That game would normally be a start for Ranger Suárez, but the team has yet to announce who their starter will be.

“Just two bad games,” said Bryce Harper. “Obviously we didn’t play well the last two. Got to clean that up going to D.C. Big weekend ahead and hopefully win the series there.”

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza spoke on a variety of topics before Wednesday night's meeting with the Braves. Here's what he said...

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McLean gets the call

The incessant chatter surrounding top prospects Nolan McLean and Brandon Sproat as rotation replacements for an ineffective Frankie Montas has finally subsided. The Mets are moving the veteran right-hander to the bullpen, and calling up McLean to start Saturday's game against the Mariners at Citi Field.

McLean's big-league promotion seemed inevitable in recent weeks, as injuries and inconsistencies have hampered the Mets' pitching staff all summer long. 

While both youngsters "were in the conversation" for this necessary call-up, according to Mendoza, McLean had a clear edge as the No. 1 prospect in the system.

"There's a lot to like. We all see the pitches," Mendoza said. "Everyone talks about the sweeper, the mid-90s, the sinker, everything else. But the way he carries himself... It's just about how he carries himself, how he deals with adversity, his ability to navigate lineups. The way he fields his position, controls the running game... I'm excited to have him here."

Whether or not the Mets truly wanted McLean in the majors this early, the 24-year-old right-hander undoubtedly earned his promotion. He's thrived between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse this season, boasting a 2.45 ERA and 1.12 WHIP with 127 strikeouts across 113.2 total innings.

The Mets love McLean's arsenal -- Mendoza mentioned a stellar sweep that complements a mid-90s fastball -- and his first full season since transitioning away from two-way player duties has exceeded expectations. 

When asked about McLean's potential in the batter's box, Mendoza dismissed it. He's going to stay on the mound, even though his role on the Mets' roster is currently undefined. For now, he's a rotation fixture. But the Mets will carefully monitor his workload, and it's possible McLean finds his way to the bullpen once the postseason nears.

"Every time you're able to call up a prospect, whether it's a position player or pitcher, the expectation here is to help us win games," Mendoza said. "That's what we'll get from a lot of these guys... We're going to need these guys. Shoutout to the development people... There's not just one guy, there's options."

McLean last pitched on Sunday, and was limited to four innings of one-run ball with seven strikeouts (74 pitches). In 13 starts with Triple-A Syracuse this season, he held opposing hitters to a measly .184/.285/291 slash line.

The return of Blackburn

McLean's promotion wasn't the only news linked to the Mets' pitching staff on Wednesday. Paul Blackburn was officially activated off the injured list, after spending a handful of weeks rehabbing a shoulder issue.

The veteran right-hander isn't returning to the rotation, however. Blackburn will be working as a reliever, and Mendoza appreciates his willingness to adjust his routine with a team-first mentality.

"He was in Syracuse, getting ready for a start earlier today. We got a hold of him, and kind of just presented the option. Do you want to stay [in Triple-A] and pitch, or do you want to come back and be in the bullpen? And without hesitation, he's like, 'I'll come back.' It says a lot about how much he wants to help us, and here he is."

Blackburn, who last pitched for the Mets on June 28, began a rehab assignment in mid-July and logged four outings in Triple-A. The 31-year-old was unreliable prior to his injury, though, as he produced a bloated 7.71 ERA and 1.98 WHIP across 18.2 innings (four starts, two relief outings).

In a corresponding move, the Mets optioned reliever Justin Hagenman, who delivered four clutch scoreless innings in Tuesday's beatdown of the Braves.

Vientos remains on bench

Mark Vientos has played just once over the last week, and his absence in the lineup hasn't been due to injury.

Mendoza said the slugging infielder -- who's hitting just .230 with a .277 on-base percentage this season -- is simply lower on the pecking order right now.

"It's where we're at. We've got four guys who are playing well," Mendoza said. "Only nine can play. So, it's a rotation spot. That's where we're at. But he's fine."