Inside The Mets

New York Mets pitcher Clay Holmes assess move to starting

Clay Holmes threw another gem for the Mets in his final spring training start against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Logan VanDine

Feb 22, 2025; Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA; New York Mets pitcher Clay Holmes (35) pitches against the Houston Astros in the third inning at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Feb 22, 2025; Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA; New York Mets pitcher Clay Holmes (35) pitches against the Houston Astros in the third inning at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
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If there were any doubts about Clay Holmes' ability to transform from a reliever into a starter for the New York Mets, the right-hander certainly brushed off any of those concerns as he turned in another dominant spring training start.

In his final spring outing against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, Holmes tossed 5.1 scoreless innings, giving up just two hits and three walks while striking out eight batters on 88 pitches. The 31-year-old finished his first spring with the Mets pitching to a 0.93 ERA across 19.1 innings, striking out 23 batters with just eight free passes.

The Mets are entering the 2025 season down two starting pitchers. Earlier this spring, Frankie Montas suffered a high-grade lat strain that will keep him out until June, while 2024 ace Sean Manaea will also begin the season on the injured list with a right oblique strain. Manaea, however, is expected to return by mid-April.

With New York's rotation not looking like the team's strength heading into Opening Day, Holmes has definitely calmed any nerves that may have been floating around the ballclub. The 31-year-old spoke to reporters after his start against the Cardinals and talked about how he feels physically heading into his first career Opening Day nod.

"I felt like physically I was in a good spot...six ups feels like you're pitching forever out there," Holmes said. "It's just a mental thing, having that mental endurance too - you're thinking through a lot of things. Physically, I'm in a good spot"

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Manager Carlos Mendoza also gave his impressions on Holmes' spring and admitted that even though the righty hurler was sharp, the second-year skipper for the Amazins' wants to see those results translate into the regular season.

"Pretty good not going to lie, but it's spring training. Now we've got to translate it into the regular season," Mendoza said. "He put himself in a really good position, came in a really spot and he continues to get better."

With Holmes' dominant spring training in the books, the next step is for him to deliver on Opening Day, when the Mets take on the Houston Astros.

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Logan VanDine
LOGAN VANDINE

Logan VanDine is a contributing writer for On SI's Mets. Logan is a graduate of Rider University where he majored in Sports Media and minored in Sports Studies. During his time at Rider, Logan worked for Rider's radio station, 107.7 The Bronc as a sports host, producer and broadcaster, and for the school's paper: The Rider News. He began his time with The Rider News as a section writer for sports and was a copy editor for two years followed by being one of the sports editors during his senior year. Logan also placed third in the New Jersey Press Foundation Awards for sports feature writing. Aside from his work at On SI, he is also a writer for FanSided covering the New York Giants and Mets and also covers the Giants for Total Apex Sports. Give him a follow on X: @VandineLogan

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