In the top 10 Mets prospects list, Nolan McLean was in first place, there Itch said: “McLean is maybe a little closer to Lincecum than Tong in terms of things and approach to the game. His style is more or less a ‘let’s see if you can hit this’ style of pitching, with nasty things moving all over the zone. He throws six different pitches at least nine percent of the time, and his sweeper is the only one hit this season. He throws it 26 percent of the time, even though batters are hitting. .361 with a .528 slugging percentage against it. If he can bounce back from that pitch and maintain the results of the others, he’ll be a monster for a long time. At 6-foot-4 and with a life as a position player, he has a lot of upside that the Mets are quickly discovering. To even call it a positive feels ridiculous when you look at his 2.08 ERA through 48 Major League innings reading back, I bumped McLean ahead of Tong, for what that’s worth, it’s worth a kick in the ass for Gray too.” Come on, man! You know what’s interesting: the Mets are spending money. Their owner spends money. They bounce the dollars out the door. Yet – again with some stink – STILL! They left two starters in the minors (McLean, Tong) and maybe three (Brandon Sproat) who, had they been promoted earlier, could have helped them reach the playoffs. How does that make sense? That is not the case. To keep them under control for longer? Why? They can just pay them. Even teams that spend money make stupid decisions because it’s so ingrained in the psyche of teams to offer cheap prospects. So, what can we expect from Nolan McLean for fantasy baseball in 2026?
Nolan McLean’s last start of the season was 5 1/3 IP, 5 ER and he still had a 2.06 ERA in five starts. Yes, he could also be the best fantasy baseball rookie of 2026. Jakkers gave you a look at the Nolan McLean dynasty, and is worth a read, but one important note:
If you want to know why McLean is having so much success, all you really have to do is look at his sweeper and sinker. The sweeper is just an annoying throw. Thrown at an average speed of 85 miles per hour, the pitch averages a horizontal break of nearly 18 inches, allowing McLean to run it away from right-handers or throw it to the back foot of left-handers.
While the sweeper is busy cutting the slab, McLean also has a sinker that averages 90 miles per hour and has reached a top speed of 93 miles per hour. Like its sweeper, the sinker has a large horizontal travel, with an average break of about 18 inches. Unlike his sweeper, which averages 0.4 inches of downward movement (ignoring gravity), the sinker averages just over two inches of vertical movement.
Hitters are hitting just .148 against the pitch with a .185 SLG. And the overall result of McLean’s sweep and sinker is a remarkable 66.1% groundball rate. Opponents are simply unable to get the two throws into the air, let alone run the ball.
He also throws a curve (80 MPH), fastball (95 MPH) and changeup (86 MPH). Five pitches for a rookie? Oh, he also has a cutter.
In the minors (last stop Triple-A), Nolan McLean posted 2.45 ERA, 10.1 K/9, 4 BB/9 and 2.54 K/BB in 113 2/3 IP. Add that to his MLB innings and he could easily pitch a full season in 2026, at least 150+ innings. I’m a little concerned about the walks, but his stuff plays so well that it limits the damage. Here are some highlights:
Nolan McLean, 130 km/h sweeper and 150 km/h twin-seamer, individual places + overlay
Sweeper = 21 inch break
Two Seamer = 19 inch run.THIS IS RIDICULOUS. ? pic.twitter.com/ZoE8uZ9pyL
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 20, 2025
I honestly don’t understand how anyone gets that. To make that heard against leftists? It feels unfair. You’ll see people swinging as the ball bounces off their shins. Ouchies. Here’s another one:
Nolan McLean, Curveball of 3377 rpm. ?? pic.twitter.com/42Er1Xx6z5
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 26, 2025
2,545 RPM is average on an MLB curve. It is extremely nutty. Actually, he has three or four pitches that you could call crazy. The best bet for hitters is to simply put everything aside and work the count so he has to throw a strike. That sounds like a viable game plan, though, so McLean, like most rookies, could be in trouble. The varied possibilities here for his projections range from ROY and Cy talk to 4+ ERA and a struggle to roster. However, that’s the nature of starting pitchers. For fantasy baseball in 2026, I’m giving Nolan McLean projections of 10-8/3.87/1.26/164 in 147 IP with a chance for much more.
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