McLean goes 8 innings as Mets blank Phillies 6-0 for 3-game sweep

NEW YORK (AP) — Nolan McLean became the first New York Mets pitcher to win his first three major league starts, tossing eight magnificent innings Wednesday night in a 6-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies that completed a three-game sweep.

Mark Vientos homered and drove in three runs as the resurgent Mets moved within four games of first-place Philadelphia in the NL East. They improved to 7-2 against the rival Phillies this year, clinching the season series and a potential postseason tiebreaker.

The teams play a four-game series in Philadelphia from Sept. 8-11.

New York holds a 4 1/2-game lead over Cincinnati for the final National League wild card.

The Mets are 8-3 since McLean (3-0) made his debut Aug. 16 against Seattle. The 24-year-old right-hander allowed four hits and walked none with six strikeouts, throwing 95 pitches and lowering his ERA to 0.89. He retired 15 straight batters following Alec Bohm’s second-inning single and faced the minimum until Bryce Harper’s two-out single in the seventh.

Bohm and Max Kepler opened the eighth with singles, but McLean preserved the shutout by retiring Nick Castellanos and Bryson Stott on medium-depth flyouts and inducing Harrison Bader to hit a squibber back toward the mound. McLean pounded his right fist into his glove as the Citi Field crowd of 41,893 roared.

Brooks Raley tossed a one-hit ninth to close out the five-hitter.

Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto and Pete Alonso had consecutive RBI singles in the third against Taijuan Walker (4-7), who gave up four runs and 10 hits in five innings against his former team.

Vientos added an RBI single in the fifth and a two-run homer in the seventh. Brandon Nimmo had three of New York's 12 hits.

New York opened the third with five straight hits off Walker in an 11-pitch span.

The Mets batted .568 (21 for 37) with runners in scoring position during the series. They have won 10 straight and 24 of 30 against Philadelphia at home, counting last year’s playoffs.

Phillies RHP Aaron Nola (2-7, 6.52 ERA) starts Thursday night against Cal Quantrill (4-11, 5.51) and the visiting Atlanta Braves in the opener of a four-game series.

Mets RHP Clay Holmes (11-6, 3.60 ERA) pitches Thursday night against Miami.

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Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper loses grip on his bat during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

From left, New York Mets' Jeff McNeil, Tyrone Taylor, Brett Baty and Starling Marte react after defeating the Philadelphia Phillies during a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

New York Mets pitcher Nolan McLean walks to the dugout during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

New York Mets' Mark Vientos hits a two-run home run leading Brandon Nimmo to score during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

New York Mets pitcher Nolan McLean reacts after defeating the Philadelphia Phillies during a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

New York Mets pitcher Nolan McLean throws during the second inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting Thursday to discuss Iran's deadly protests at the request of the United States, even as President Donald Trump left unclear what actions he would take against the Islamic state.

Tehran appeared to make conciliatory statements in an effort to defuse the situation after Trump threatened to take action to stop further killing of protesters, including the execution of anyone detained in Tehran’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests.

Iran’s crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,615, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported. The death toll exceeds any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights for hours without explanation early Thursday and some personnel at a key U.S. military base in Qatar were advised to evacuate. The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait also ordered its personnel to “temporary halt” travel to the multiple military bases in the small Gulf Arab country.

Iran previously closed its airspace during the 12-day war against Israel in June.

Here is the latest:

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has spoken with his counterpart in Iran, who said the situation was “now stable,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Abbas Araghchi said “he hoped China will play a greater role in regional peace and stability” during the talks, according to the statement from the ministry.

“China opposes imposing its will on other countries, and opposes a return to the ‘law of the jungle’,” Wang said.

“China believes that the Iranian government and people will unite, overcome difficulties, maintain national stability, and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests,” he added. “China hopes all parties will cherish peace, exercise restraint, and resolve differences through dialogue. China is willing to play a constructive role in this regard.”

“We are against military intervention in Iran,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told journalists in Istanbul on Thursday. “Iran must address its own internal problems… They must address their problems with the region and in global terms through diplomacy so that certain structural problems that cause economic problems can be addressed.”

Ankara and Tehran enjoy warm relations despite often holding divergent interests in the region.

Fidan said the unrest in Iran was rooted in economic conditions caused by sanctions, rather than ideological opposition to the government.

Iranians have been largely absent from an annual pilgrimage to Baghdad, Iraq, to commemorate the death of Imam Musa al-Kadhim, one of the twelve Shiite imams.

Many Iranian pilgrims typically make the journey every year for the annual religious rituals.

Streets across Baghdad were crowded with pilgrims Thursday. Most had arrived on foot from central and southern provinces of Iraq, heading toward the shrine of Imam al-Kadhim in the Kadhimiya district in northern Baghdad,

Adel Zaidan, who owns a hotel near the shrine, said the number of Iranian visitors this year compared to previous years was very small. Other residents agreed.

“This visit is different from previous ones. It lacks the large numbers of Iranian pilgrims, especially in terms of providing food and accommodation,” said Haider Al-Obaidi.

Europe’s largest airline group said Thursday it would halt night flights to and from Tel Aviv and Jordan's capital Amman for five days, citing security concerns as fears grow that unrest in Iran could spiral into wider regional violence.

Lufthansa — which operates Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings — said flights would run only during daytime hours from Thursday through Monday “due to the current situation in the Middle East.” It said the change would ensure its staff — which includes unionized cabin crews and pilots -- would not be required to stay overnight in the region.

The airline group also said its planes would bypass Iranian and Iraqi airspace, key corridors for air travel between the Middle East and Asia.

Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights for several hours early Thursday without explanation.

A spokesperson for Israel’s Airport Authority, which oversees Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, said the airport was operating as usual.

Iranian state media has denied claims that a young man arrested during Iran’s recent protests was condemned to death. The statement from Iran’s judicial authorities on Thursday contradicted what it said were “opposition media abroad” which claimed the young man had been quickly sentenced to death during a violent crackdown on anti-government protests in the country.

State television didn’t immediately give any details beyond his name, Erfan Soltani. Iranian judicial authorities said Soltani was being held in a detention facility outside of the capital. Alongside other protesters, he has been accused of “propaganda activities against the regime,” state media said.

New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Thursday that his government was “appalled by the escalation of violence and repression” in Iran.

“We condemn the brutal crackdown being carried out by Iran’s security forces, including the killing of protesters,” Peters posted on X.

“Iranians have the right to peaceful protest, freedom of expression, and access to information – and that right is currently being brutally repressed,” he said.

Peters said his government had expressed serious concerns to the Iranian Embassy in Wellington.

A demonstrator lights a cigarette with a burning poster depicting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a rally in support of Iran's anti-government protests, in Holon, Israel, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide mass protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide mass protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)