Mets' Nolan McLean 'fired up' to be back pitching, 'super excited' to join Team USA for WBC

After a slight setback, Mets and Team USA starting pitcher Nolan McLean was back on the mound Wednesday and feeling more like himself again.

"Pretty good. Almost too loose at times, which I guess is a good thing," McLean told reporters after throwing in a sim game on the backfields. "Felt a little erratic. I think I was just fired up to get out there."

McLean had been scheduled to leave Mets camp last Friday, but after dealing with the vertigo-like symptoms, he has yet to travel. Luckily, he seems to be in good spirits and is ready to join his Team USA teammates (likely in Houston) as they prepare for the 2026 World Baseball Classic and their first game on March 6.

"I had no symptoms out there throwing, which I think was the ultimate test," McLean said, adding that he'll meet with the Mets training staff soon to make sure he's good to go. "Hopefully I can leave here in the next day or so."

The right-hander is scheduled to pitch in the final pool-play game on March 10 against Team Italy, but could make arguably the biggest start of his career later on in the tournament. Manager Mark DeRosa said Tuesday that McLean is slated to be the WBC Championship Game starting pitcher if Team USA makes it there on March 17. When asked about the honor, the 24-year-old said he's focused on having a strong outing against Italy and helping the team reach the title game.

"That's a great honor, but there's a lot of baseball to be played and a lot of really good teams out there," McLean said. "So my job is to go out there and get to compete against Italy, do the best I can, and to be a good teammate for the rest of the games. Hopefully make the finals and get the ball."

When McLean joins the rest of Team USA, he'll be the second-youngest pitcher on the roster (Paul Skenes is 23) and the one with the least amount of major league experience. With other aces on the team in addition to Skenes, including Tarik Skubal, Logan Webb, and retired, future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw, McLean is looking forward to being a sponge around them.

"I'm super excited to pick their brains," McLean said. "We got a bunch of Cy Youngs in that building so it'll be really cool to kind of learn from them, see how they handle everything, and just also watch from afar at the same time."

In his one spring training start on Feb. 26, McLean tossed four innings of one-hit ball with six strikeouts. Afterward, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza noted how the young star is "built different" for the big moments. McLean was asked about that on Wednesday and gave some insight into his mindset, especially with the potential WBC Championship Game outing on the horizon.

"I'm just uber-competitive. Whether it's out there on the backfield today or if it's in the WBC, I try to treat every start the same," McLean said. "At the end of the day, it's a competition -- me vs. the batter. I never want to give in and lose any competition that I'm playing in. 

"I try to do my best to treat it all the same. Obviously there is an intensity spike in certain situations and certain games, whether it's at Citi Field, WBC, or like I said, in the backfield. I try to treat everything the same and just win the competition every time I go out there."