☀️ Good Morning:
The 90s are back!
At least that’s what the latest J.Crew catalog is telling me. And yes, they even brought the catalog back in digital form, packed with images of Johnny Good Looking wearing pleated pants and oversized sweaters as if they were trying to impress Carolyn Kennedy.
The Mets are following the fashion trend with a vintage approach to their pitching staff. Whether it’s future Hall-of-Famers, has-beens, or reclamation projects, the rotation has been an adventure in both expensive and actual thrift shopping over the past few years.
That’s what happens when you can’t develop anything new. Luckily, the pitch designers are hard at work to change that.
We caught a glimpse of a new style on Wednesday in the form of Nolan McLean.
The former two-way player matched his building hype over three scoreless frames in a minor-league appearance. It’s a small sample against low competition, but like a topstitch on a designer mockup, the velocity and pitch movement provided enough aesthetic to hint something good might be coming.
☕️ Grab your coffee for your morning dose of Mets Fix!
📊 Mets Fix Poll
Thanks to everyone who responded to our first Mets Fix fan poll. Hope springs eternal, as it appears everyone believes the Mets will have a winning season, and most of you see 90+ wins in the cards.
Given most of you believe they will make the playoffs, let’s find out how far you think they will go.
Give Nolan McLean credit for trying to keep his two-way dream alive as long as possible. He continued to flash plus power through the start of last season in both High-A and Double-A, hitting eight home runs in 60 games, before turning his focus entirely to pitching.
McLean likes to strikeout, which is good for a pitcher, but not so much for a hitter. After whiffing over 50% of the time he stepped to the plate, it was time to turn his attention to trying to strike other people out. After putting away his batting gloves, he pitched to a 3.12 ERA over the final two and a half months of the season.
2025 will be his first only on the mound, offering the potential for a breakout campaign. Already, several of the prospect lists have him rising to the Top-5 in the organization.
Is he a legit pitching prospect?
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