ARLINGTON, Texas (Interstat) — Nolan McLean carried a perfect game into the fifth inning, Marcus Semien hit a tiebreaking home run in the eighth and Brett Baty delivered a pinch-hit grand slam in the ninth as the New York Mets beat the Texas Rangers 7-2 on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, at Globe Life Park. A crowd of 30,188 watched the game finish in 2 hours, 29 minutes. The Mets finished with eight hits, while the Rangers had four.

The Mets improved to 73-85. Texas dropped to 78-80. The Rangers entered the day tied atop the American League West with Houston, though Houston owns the tiebreaker. Texas will not be able to clinch the division or be eliminated from contention until Friday at the earliest, but the home loss marked the Rangers’ first series defeat at home since July 20-22 against the Chicago White Sox. New York, already eliminated from postseason contention, continued to play spoiler in the AL West race.

McLean was dominant for most of the night. The Mets right-hander retired the first 12 Texas batters he faced, mixing strikeouts and weak contact. He finished seven innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits with one walk and five strikeouts. McLean improved to 12-9 on the season. His recent form had been uneven, including a loss to Philadelphia on Sept. 17 when he gave up one earned run over six innings and a loss at the New York Yankees on Sept. 11 when he allowed five earned runs over five innings, but he controlled the Rangers for much of Wednesday.

New York gave McLean an early lead in the third. Francisco Lindor singled with two outs, and Juan Soto followed with a two-run homer to right-center field, his 27th of the season. Soto went 1 for 2 with two RBIs and was intentionally walked twice. The Mets added pressure in the fifth when Francisco Alvarez and A.J. Ewing singled, but Tyler Alexander intentionally walked Soto and Bo Bichette grounded out to end the threat.

Texas starter Cody Bradford kept the Rangers close. Bradford pitched 4 1/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on four hits with one strikeout. He left with the game still within reach, and the Texas bullpen turned to Alexander, Chase Silseth and Jacob Latz. Alexander worked 1 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing no hits with one walk and one strikeout. Silseth recorded one out, allowing one hit and one walk with one strikeout.

The Rangers finally broke through against McLean in the fifth. Brandon Nimmo led off with a single, Texas’ first baserunner of the game. Ezequiel Duran grounded out to move Nimmo to second, and Jake Burger singled to left to score Nimmo. Nicky Lopez followed with a single, and Danny Jansen walked to load the bases. Evan Carter then grounded into a forceout that scored Burger and tied the game. Wyatt Langford popped out to end the inning, but Texas had erased the Mets’ early advantage.

McLean recovered with a clean sixth. He retired Corey Seager, Josh Jung and Nimmo in order. In the seventh, Ezequiel Duran, Burger and Lopez all made outs, with Lopez striking out swinging. McLean exited after seven innings with the game tied.

New York reclaimed the lead in the eighth. After Mark Vientos struck out and Carson Benge flew out, Marcus Semien homered to left-center field on a fly ball. The solo shot, Semien’s 15th of the season, made it 3-2. Semien went 1 for 4 with one home run and one RBI. Jacob Latz fell to 4-4 after allowing one earned run on one hit with one walk and two strikeouts over 1 2/3 innings. Devin Williams pitched a scoreless eighth for the Mets, allowing no hits and striking out one.

The Mets blew the game open in the ninth. Nick Morabito singled with one out, and Lindor grounded out to move him to second. Jordan Montgomery intentionally walked Soto, and Bichette walked to load the bases. Brett Baty, batting as a pinch hitter, then hit a grand slam to right-center field. The homer, Baty’s 11th, scored Morabito, Soto and Bichette. Baty finished 1 for 1 with one home run and four RBIs. Carson Benge struck out to end the inning, but New York had built a 7-2 lead.

Cionel Pérez pitched the ninth for New York, allowing one hit and no runs. Texas mounted a small threat when Josh Jung singled, but Nimmo grounded into a forceout and Duran grounded into a forceout to end the game. The Mets’ pitching staff combined for 15 strikes, 39 balls and 15 balls in play. Texas pitchers combined for 10 strikes, 43 balls and 10 balls in play.

The Rangers had opportunities to make the final innings interesting, but the Mets’ bullpen kept them off the scoreboard. Williams and Pérez each turned in scoreless relief appearances. Williams struck out one in his inning, while Pérez allowed one hit. The victory gave New York a second straight win in the series after a 6-3 victory on Tuesday. The Mets and Rangers are scheduled to conclude the series Thursday in Arlington.

For Texas, Bradford’s 4 1/3 innings kept the club in the game, but the offense could not solve McLean until the fifth. The Rangers managed four hits overall and did not score after the fifth inning. The loss left Texas with little margin in the AL West race, especially with Houston holding the tiebreaker. The Rangers will next continue their homestand against the Mets before traveling to Minnesota.

McLean’s performance was the top star of the game. He allowed only three hits and one walk while striking out five. Baty’s grand slam was the decisive blow, and he finished with four RBIs. Bradford pitched 4 1/3 innings and allowed two earned runs on four hits with one strikeout. Soto went 1 for 2 with a home run and two RBIs. Alexander worked 1 2/3 scoreless innings with one walk and one strikeout. Williams added a scoreless inning with one strikeout. Semien went 1 for 4 with a home run and one RBI. Pérez pitched a scoreless inning and allowed one hit. Latz took the loss after allowing one earned run on one hit with one walk and two strikeouts. Silseth allowed one hit and one walk with one strikeout in one-third of an inning.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of New York Mets 7, Texas Rangers 6. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Texas with a 51.6 percent probability to win. New York had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 9 finished above the over/under line of 7.5.