Nolan McLean (5-5, 3.78 ERA, 113 strikeouts on the year) gets the ball for New York opposite Martin Perez in Sunday's 12:30 PM ET series finale. McLean is 24 and has been the Mets' most consistent arm this season — a genuine bright spot in a rotation battered by injury and underperformance. Perez has been one of the quiet success stories in Atlanta's rotation, posting a 2.78 ERA and 1.07 WHIP across 72 innings and giving the Braves length at a point when their staff has desperately needed it. The Mets' situation is about as grim as a first-half gets. They were 34-47 and had just dropped 6 straight — including a doubleheader sweep to the Cubs that featured 6 errors in one game — when the organization fired Carlos Mendoza on June 26 and installed Andy Green as interim manager. Green's record since taking over: 2-4. The offense ranks 13th in the NL in runs scored and 15th in OPS. Marcus Semien was just diagnosed with a Grade 3 hip flexor strain and faces a minimum 4-to-6 week absence. Luis Robert Jr. (back) is on the 60-day IL and only recently began a rehab assignment. Jorge Polanco (Achilles) only just started working his way back at Triple-A Syracuse. Atlanta at 50-34 has its own headaches — Ronald Acuna Jr. has been on the 10-day IL since mid-June with a hamstring strain, and manager Walt Weiss said a return before the All-Star break looks unlikely. Spencer Strider (elbow) is on the 60-day. The rotation has been a concern, too: since mid-May, Braves starters posted a collective ERA of 5.20, and Bryce Elder was roughed up for 19 earned runs across his last 3 starts alone. Even so, a shaky Atlanta rotation is a completely different animal than what New York is running out there, and Perez against this Mets lineup is about as comfortable a spot as a veteran southpaw can draw. New York got throttled 9-3 in Toronto in its most recent game and hasn't found any consistent footing under Green — though a 6-2 win over the Phillies that snapped a 7-game skid showed at least some pulse. The Braves beat the Cardinals 5-1 on Tuesday and would love nothing more than to win this holiday weekend series heading into the All-Star break. McLean has enough strikeout ability to keep it interesting early, but the Mets have scored 3 or fewer runs in 3 of their last 5 games. Perez against this lineup at home is a tough assignment for New York to beat.