The New York Mets beat the Washington Nationals 8-1 at Nationals Park in Washington on Tuesday. The Mets' Mark Vents hit a home run for the second consecutive game. The Mets stand at 67-58; the Nationals are 50-75.

Nolan McLean (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, eight strikeouts); Braves: Joey Wentz (4-3, 4.72 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 59 strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mets -111, Braves -108; over/under is 8 1/2 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Atlanta Braves open a three-game series at home against the New York Mets on Friday.

Blackburn was originally supposed to be with the Yankees for Wednesday's game against the Rays at Steinbrenner Field but encountered extensive flight delays in Texas after flying in from Idaho. He did not arrive in New York until early Thursday afternoon after rebooking flights.

The right-hander was an All-Star as recently as 2022, when he pitched for the Athletics. That year, Blackburn had a 4.28 ERA with 89 strikeouts and 30 walks across 21 outings. In a corresponding move after signing and activating Blackburn to the active roster,

The scuffling New York Mets have been in desperate need of a starter other than David Peterson to pitch deep into games

Nolan McLean gave the slumping Mets a boost with seven strong innings for his second career win, and New York beat the Atlanta Braves 12-7