The Mets dropped the series opener to the Phillies 3-0 on Thursday night at Citi Field, and man, this offense just vanished. They mustered a pitiful four hits all game. It’s tough to watch when your bats go completely silent like that.
McLean Was Dealing Until Things Got Weird
Nolan McLean was absolutely dealing early, carving up the Phillies through the first four innings. He was sharp, using his entire arsenal to keep their hitters off balance, pitching quickly and efficiently. We’re talking 12 pitches per inning on average, retiring eight of nine batters from the second through the end of the fourth. He was painting!
Then the fifth inning hit. It was a brutal sequence of soft contact that just broke through. A bloop single by Brandon Marsh, a pair of two-out walks, and then Bryce Harper hits this slow grounder to short. Francisco Lindor’s throw to second to try and nab Trea Turner was a hair too late, and Marsh scored from third. Just like that, it’s 1-0 Philadelphia. McLean managed to escape further damage, getting Luis Arraez to line out, but the Phillies were on the board. He finished a solid 6.0 innings, giving up one run on seven hits, walking three, and striking out five, all while lowering his ERA to 3.18. He threw 82 pitches, 57 for strikes. He deserved better.
Nola Was Unhittable, Mets Couldn’t Break Through
Aaron Nola was straight up unhittable for the first five innings. The dude held the Mets without a single hit and faced the minimum. He even picked Juan Soto off first after a walk and then erased him with a double play later. The Mets were swinging early and often, not generating any hard contact, and Nola barely broke a sweat, throwing only 47 pitches through five frames. It was masterful.
Finally, in the sixth, Nick Morabito ripped a line drive single to left field for the first hit, putting runners on first and second with one out. You could feel the energy! This was it! But then Lindor grounds into a 4-6-3 double play. Crushing. The Mets had another shot in the seventh with back-to-back two-out singles from Carson Benge and Mark Vientos, setting up A.J. Ewing. But Ewing tapped out to short, leaving those guys stranded. Nola finished with seven scoreless innings, three hits, three walks, and four Ks. Just dominant. Juan Soto came up as the tying run in the eighth with runners on first and second, two outs, and grounded out softly on the first pitch. Painful.
Scary Scene at First
There was a seriously scary moment in the sixth inning when first baseman Jared Young was taken off the field on a stretcher. He got kneed in the head by McLean on a play at first. The ball, hit by Justin Crawford, rolled slowly up the first base line, and both Young and McLean went for it. Young lunged right to field it, and McLean arrived right as his right knee hit Young in the head/face. Young was lying face down, motionless for several minutes while the medical staff attended to him. Absolutely terrifying to see a player go down like that.
This 3-0 loss in the opener of a four-game series really stings. The offense needs to wake up, and fast. They’ve got three more games against the Phillies, so they gotta find a way to score runs. This can’t keep happening.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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