Nolan McLean’s dominance last season, coupled with his rise to stardom in the World Baseball Classic, have set the bar high for the electric Mets rookie.

On nights he had no-hit stuff earlier this season, it would have been hard to envision McLean sitting in his present position, trying to recover from two straight beatdowns to get his season back on track.

That opportunity will arise on Sunday against the Marlins at Citi Field. The Mets certainly need their rookie co-ace to emerge from this slump if they have any shot of rising from the deep hole in which they are submerged.

A refresher: McLean was handed a five-run lead in Washington two starts ago, and watched it wither. The Nationals battered him for nine runs (three of which were unearned) over 5 ⅔ innings to give the Mets their first setback during a nosedive that became seven losses in eight games.