Anyone following baseball these days is well aware of the sport's most unique player, two-way unicorn Shohei Ohtani. Major League Baseball hasn't seen a superstar who can dominate at the plate and the mound like Ohtani since the days of Babe Ruth, leading to a rise of prospects who are trying to follow in Ohtani's two-way footsteps. The New York Mets happen to have a budding two-way player in their farm system in Nolan McLean, who is the focus of this week's edition of Minor League Mondays.
The Mets took McLean in the third round of the 2023 draft out of Oklahoma State, where he was known for his prodigious power at the plate and elite fastball out of the bullpen. That combination of skills intrigued the Mets, who listed McLean as a two-way player when they drafted him and have allowed McLean to continue doing both disciplines as a minor leaguer.
The approach the Mets have taken with McLean is similar to the one that the Los Angeles Angels took with Ohtani when he first arrived in the United States. While Oklahoma State had McLean working as a reliever and playing the field (he can play third or the outfield), the Mets believe McLean's arsenal can play well as a starter, leading him to serve as a DH on days he isn't pitching.
After limiting his workload after a long college season in 2023, McLean began 2024 with High-A Brooklyn and dominated on the mound, going 2-2 with a 2.57 ERA in seven starts, racking up a 36:10 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 28 innings pitched. McLean also flashed some serious pop at the plate, slugging seven doubles and five home runs in 25 games for the Cyclones to post an outstanding .552 slugging percentage in 67 at bats.
The strong early results led the Mets to promote McLean to AA Binghamton, where his ability to play both ways will be seriously tested. There are concerns about his long swing, which has led to 44 strikeouts in 83 at bats across both levels, and he will need to work on shortening it a bit to take full advantage of his prodigious power.
McLean appears more advanced as a pitcher, where he already has a strong four-seam fastball and slider that can serve as an out pitch. The rest of McLean's repertoire features a trio of offspeed pitches (a curveball, cutter and seldom-used changeup) that could be the key to determining whether he can stick as a starter at the big league level.
McLean entered the season ranked as the Mets' 19th-best prospect according to MLB.com and will need a lot of development time since he is trying to master two distinct disciplines at once. Expect AA to be a big challenge for McLean, who will need to make the biggest jump in the minor leagues as both a pitcher and a hitter. The Mets have plenty of time to let McLean sink or swim at AA, which could determine his viability as a two-way player going forward.
There is a strong floor for McLean to contribute in the big leagues as a pitcher but his plate discipline will determine if he can stick as an everyday player too. There are few two-way players in the minors as intriguing as McLean, however, making his development a worthy storyline for Mets' fans to track going forward.
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