NY Mets rookie Nolan McLean was modestly perfect in one stat last season

What’s the one thing that Edwin Diaz couldn’t figure out? Holding runners on. His 15 stolen bases allowed last year led the New York Mets by almost double the next player, Clay Holmes with 8. The key against the former Mets closer was always to get someone quick on base. A walk often turned into a double with a bloop single after two strikeouts sometimes leading to trouble.

We’re not comparing sample size here, but to the credit of Nolan McLean, he did the complete opposite as Diaz. Not a single runner stole a base against him successfully with 3 cut down in their attempts.

McLean did a lot of amazing things in his brief, unofficial rookie campaign. Not allowing the pressure of allowing a runner to steal an extra base is an overlooked accomplishment and a credit to Mets catchers, and not just Luis Torrens.

Give Nolan McLean an extra hand for keeping runners stuck on the same bag

McLean made 8 starts with Torrens catching 2, Francisco Alvarez behind the dish for 4, and Hayden Senger even getting in there for another pair. The three catchers all threw out the only attempted base stealer they saw.

Alvarez had to deal with the most threats, but also had the lowest ERA with McLean on the mound. The 0.83 ERA was a positive and underrated result as it’s Alvarez who should do the majority of catching with McLean on the mound. Senger did well too with a 1.20 ERA as McLean’s batterymate. The Torrens ERA was at 5.56 with 3 home runs being a large part of the blame.

McLean wasn’t perfect in the minors, allowing 13 stolen bases. It’s still not a bad total from 161.2 total innings in the majors and minors.

Interestingly, McLean gave up 3 stolen bases on a July 18 start with Alvarez behind the plate. He didn’t allow another in 4 more minor league starts. That day was a particularly bad one for McLean who allowed 6 runs in 3.2 innings.

McLean will be known for a lot of things. He strikes out hitters. He gets ground balls. He also helps shut down base runners. Let's see if he can manage to do the same thing again in 2026 and how long the streak can continue.