Seventh Hell in Blue Heaven: Mets waste Nolan McLean gem by not hitting as per usual

Dodgers 2 Mets 1 (Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA)

Mets record: 7-11

Mets streak: Lost 7

WP - Blake Treinen (1-0)

LP - Brooks Raley (0-1)

SV - Alex Vesia (2)

Seat on the Korner:

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He was just one out short of picking up the W, but it's impossible to ignore Yoshinobu Yamamoto's impact on this game as he went 7 and 2/3's giving up one run on four hits and a walk while striking out seven. His heavy lifting was the biggest reason for the Dodgers' victory.

Need to Know

• Francisco Lindor's leadoff home run off Yoshinobu Yamamoto was his first homer and first RBI of the season. Lindor would end the game with two of the Mets' four hits.

• Lindor's home run was the only Met run of the game, and they have now scored 10 runs in their last 7 games.

• Nolan McLean was fantastic, going 7 innings while giving up just one run on two hits and two walks while striking out eight.

• Francisco Alvarez hit 5th for the first time this season and went 0-for-3 with a walk.

• Alex Vesia got the save, notable because it wasn't Edwin Diaz who recently blew a three-run lead to the Rangers after his velocity trended down. Vesia would strike out the side in a clean inning.

Turning Point

Brooks Raley and the Mets had a decision to make with a the go-ahead run on second and one out in the 8th. Pitch to Shohei Ohtani, who hadn't had a hit all series but is still Shohei Ohtani, or walk him to pitch to Kyle Tucker. They elected to pitch to Kyle Tucker.

Walking Shohei is always the prudent decision. But it was the wrong decision only because when you're on a streak like the Mets are on, even prudent decisions turn out to be wrong. It's just the way it goes when it's all going wrong, prudent or not.

Three Keys

A Turning Point for a Season?

Francisco Lindor always starts slow. He is also coming back from a hamate bone injury which, as we know from Alvarez's injury, affects your ability to drive the ball. So this start to the season from Lindor is not surprising, other than the vapor locks on the basepaths and in the field.

So to see him hit his first home run of the season against a Bonafide ace is soothing to the soul.

It's just too bad that Lindor's home run couldn't turn around the Mets offense.

Aces As Advertised

Also soothing to the soul for old time baseball fans is the return of the pitcher's duel, if only for a night. After the Lindor home run, Yamamoto retired 20 straight hitters and the Mets were right back to looking like the Mets of the previous 48 hours.

But Nolan McLean matched Yamamoto zero for zero after the first inning, and his sweepers and cutters were all on point as he pitched the game of his life.

It's refreshing in this day and age to see two starters not only go deep into a game, but match the hype that was building before the game.

Rallies Snuffed

The Mets two biggest chances to beat the Dodgers and shock the world (okay, maybe just shock me) came in the 7th and 8th. In the 7th, the Mets mustered a two out rally when Bo Bichette doubled for the first hit off Yamamoto after he retired 20 straight, and a walk to Alvarez. It brought up Brett Baty for the one stressful at-bat Yamamoto had to deal with tonight.

After the strikeout of Baty, Dave Roberts brought Yamamoto back for the 8th, and he started to lose it a little bit. Again with two outs and nobody on, Carson Benge lined a single to left before Lindor singled through the hole to set up first and third with Luis Robert Jr. up. Yamamoto was then pulled for Blake Treinen.

It turned out to be the last real chance the Mets would have, as Tucker got the go-ahead hit in the next inning and that was all she wrote for the Mets as their losing streak reached seven games.