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Within the New York Mets organization, Nolan McLean's name was considered just a top prospect about a year ago, working hard to earn a spot in Major League Baseball. Now, he's facing what could be the most important game of his entire career.
McLean is slated as the starting pitcher for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic Final-a completely new scenario for the young right-hander, who only made eight starts with the Mets at the end of last season.
What McLean said about the possibility of leading USA to the title
The Mets pitcher spoke to the press about his World Baseball Classic experience ahead of this huge opportunity to help Team USA win the title, while also acknowledging the struggles he had in his first start.
"You're crazy if you don't want to do this honestly," McLean said to reporters on Monday in Miami. "Getting an opportunity to put USA on your chest and go out there and compete with, honestly, the best players in the world, it's an unbelievable experience for me. As a competitor, I just want to go out there and compete and try to win and try to put my team in the best spot when I do come out of the game."
"Obviously, I got clipped there a couple times with the homer, but overall felt really good," he said. "As a competitor...if you work your whole life at something, you want to be put in these spots so it's just kind of a dream come true to be able to get the ball in such a big moment, it's something I want to do," he added.
McLean's first start was on March 10 against Italy, where he began by striking out three batters in the first inning, only to then allow three earned runs-including two home runs-in the second inning during his three innings of work.
The United States will face the winner of the matchup between Venezuela and Italy in the final, as they aim to win the competition for the first time since 2017.