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.

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

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