Nationals pitcher Sean Nolin's long road back takes him near where it began

For an afternoon anyway, Sean Nolin’s long road back to the major leagues landed him about 40 minutes from where it all began. Nolin, a Seaford native, started for Nationals in their 4-1 loss to the Mets Thursday afternoon in the first game of a doubleheader at Citi Field.

Nolin, who hadn’t pitched in the big leagues since Oct. 3, 2015, allowed four runs and eight hits in three-plus innings. He struck out two, walked none, and threw 51 pitches.

"[It was] just excitement, to be honest," Nolin said of pitching so close to home. "I wasn’t nervous about what could happen. My family and friends were at the game [Wednesday] because I knew I was probably going to pitch at some point, but it was all positive and good energy. I was definitely happy with it."

Despite the almost six-year layoff between major league starts, Nolin said he felt pretty normal Thursday.

"I definitely wasn’t as nervous this time," he said. "…The early [start] probably helped as well. I wasn’t too over-energetic."

Nolin’s one major blemish came in the second inning when Brandon Nimmo cracked a three-run homer to give the Mets a 3-0 lead. He ran into trouble again in the third, but got out of a first-and-third, no out jam by getting Jeff McNeil to line into a double play and Jonathan Villar to fly out to rightfield. Nolin was pulled with no one out in the fourth after allowing a single to Michael Conforto.

"I knew it was a doubleheader today and tried to get as deep into the game as I could," Nolin said. "It felt good…The fastball was definitely the best today, fastball and cutter. I was mixing changeup as well. Not too many curveballs, it didn’t feel like the right pitch today, but I definitely mixed all four [pitches] pretty well."

Following the game, Nolin texted with his old high school coach, Mike Milano, who still coaches at Seaford.

"I loved what I saw today," Milano said. "[The Mets] didn’t hit the ball too hard, other than the Nimmo home run and a couple of singles after that. He battled and I really hope he gets another chance…At age 31, as a lefty, if he could keep the ball down and throw the ball like he did today, I think he can keep pitching this year. I hope he does."

Nolin, who pitched for Seaford High School from 2006-08, was drafted three times — by the Brewers in 2008, the Mariners in 2009, and, the Blue Jays in 2010. He appeared in two games for the Blue Jays, a start in 2013 and a relief appearance in 2014. He made six starts for the A’s in 2015.

Then the journey back started.

He had Tommy John surgery in 2016 and didn’t pitch again until 2018, when he pitched in 29 games for the Rockies Double-A affiliate.

After being released from the White Sox system in 2019, Nolin made eight appearances (six starts) with the Ducks, reshaping his career at the independent level.

Nolin was virtually untouchable in Central Islip. He went 6-0 with a 1.10 ERA, including a 0.77 ERA in six starts. As a starter, he struck out 38 batters in 35 innings. Those numbers attracted the attention of the Mariners, who purchased Nolin’s contract and sent him to Triple-A.

Nolin, who also played in Japan and Mexico on his road back to the bigs, is the 23rd player in Ducks history to make it back to the major leagues after playing in Central Islip, and the second this season. Knuckleballer Mickey Jannis, who played for the Ducks in 2015, was called up by the Orioles earlier this season.