Christian Scott looking sharper as he tries to build off back-to-back strong Mets outings

The Mets rotation, a mess for much of the season with Clay Holmes out with a fractured leg, Kodai Senga pitching in the minors, Nolan McLean not pitching to expectations and Sean Manaea and David Peterson trading spots in the bullpen, could use a boost. As Christian Scott makes his eighth start of the season Friday night in San Diego, the right-hander will be looking to build on his two best outings of the season.  Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Mike Puma about the inside buzz on the Mets.He followed up five shutout innings in Miami with five more solid innings against the Marlins at Citi Field in his most recent outing, when Scott allowed just one run and picked up the first win of his major league career. “I liked what I saw,’’ a National League scout said of Scott’s last two starts.

“It’s what you want from a guy coming back from Tommy John surgery: sharper and better stuff as he knocks the rust off and gets back to who he was.” Of course, the Mets are still learning just who that is, since Scott — who turns 27 this month — showed flashes of significant promise when he was first called up to the majors in 2024, but also struggled badly at times. And even if this isn’t the way they would have liked the season to develop, the never-ending issues in the rotation have given Scott plenty of opportunities to grow on the mound. His four-seam fastball velocity is up and more effective than it was in 2024 — as are most of Scott’s pitches, including the cutter he used frequently in his previous start. But more than just the stuff, the scout was impressed by how Scott bounced back from his first start of the season, when he walked five batters, hit another and was knocked out of the game in the second inning. “When you’re coming off that surgery, you don’t know how you’re gonna feel at this level and when your command isn’t there, it’s fair to wonder when it’s gonna ...