McLean joined Matt Harvey as the only pitchers in Mets history to earn a win, strike out eight or more and allow zero runs in their debut.

The identity of the most successful New York Mets teams has been about pitching. Rarely have they been an organization fully dependent on large offensive number

The Mets' top pitching prospect tossed five scoreless innings against the Seattle Mariners in his first MLB start.

The first pitch was a ball. The second, Rodríguez lined toward McLean, who fielded the ball on one hop behind his back, and then had the presence of mind to throw to second for a chance at a double-play.

There are many culprits. A starry, highly paid lineup main four of Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo has lacked enough clutch impact. A refortified bullpen has been central to blowing leads in each of the seven games going into Saturday.

Nolan McLean is as advertised. In fact, in his MLB debut, he had a start only matched by one of the most-hyped young pitchers in Mets history. McLean went 5.1 innings on Saturday and struck out eight without allowing a run.

New York Mets right-hander Nolan McLean made a successful big-league debut on Saturday afternoon in a win against the Seattle Mariners ( box score ). McLean held the Mariners without a run (earned or otherwise) over 5 1/3 innings, in the process becoming the first debuting Mets pitcher in more than a dozen years to accomplish the feat.

McLean showed off a five-pitch arsenal that included a high-70s curveball, a high-80s sweeper, a 90-mph cutter and sinkers and fastballs both measured in the high 90s. He limited the Mariners to one hit in 10 plate appearances with a runner on base.

McLean throws with incredible spin, which has fueled his rise through the minors: "He can make the ball do crazy stuff."

After what had been a disappointing past few weeks to say the least, New York Mets fans were treated to a memorable MLB debut from top prospect Nolan McLean on