Sean Manaea began the season with a lot of uncertainty hanging over his head. A significant drop in velocity on his fastball, plus a move from starter to bulk reliever; after a difficult 2025 season, it was hard to know how things would unfold for the veteran. But to his credit, once Manaea reclaimed his place in the starting rotation, he never looked back. That was on full display in the Mets’ 11-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday, his most dominant showing since the 2024 campaign.

Before taking the mound, he was given a 2-0 lead, thanks to RBIs from Carson Benge and Luis Robert Jr. in the top of the first. Manaea took that cushion and ran with it. He retired eight of the first nine hitters he faced, seven via the strikeout. The Pirates would get on the board with a solo home run from Jake Mangum in the bottom of the third, but that would be all. The Mets continued to add on, and Manaea remained sharp as ever. After the Mangum home run, Pittsburgh garnered one hit against the lefty.

Manaea put out his best performance of the year, allowing one run on three hits with a season-high 11 strikeouts in seven innings. Sunday was just an extension of what he has been able to accomplish of late. Over his last six starts, Manaea has now pitched to a 2.95 ERA across 36 2/3 innings. Length has been a major positive for him, throwing six innings or more in five of those outings. “To know how much work he put in to get to where he is right now, it’s even more fun,” interim manager Andy Green said postgame.

When things were going poorly for him, the velocity was always the first thing mentioned. But since rejoining the rotation in mid-June, he has thrown 13 pitches of at least 94 MPH. All of them have come in his last two starts. For a pitching staff that lost quite a few people at or before the trade deadline, Manaea rediscovering his stuff from 2024 could not have come at a better time.

A few months ago, it was hard to tell what Manaea’s future with the Mets looked like. Not anymore. Manaea has done more than enough to prove he will be a part of the Mets’ rotation in 2027. Having a veteran to go along with the young guys like Nolan McLean, Christian Scott and Zac Thornton will go a long way.