Baltimore Orioles Considered Best Fit for New York Yankees All-Star Closer

The Baltimore Orioles could take a chance on the New York Yankees reliever in free agency.

Oct 18, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Clay Holmes (35) pitches in the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians during game four of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles bullpen was never going to be elite after Felix Bautista was injured over a year ago.

When Bautista went down, the Orioles attempted to replace him with Craig Kimbrel. While the veteran reliever is arguably one of the best in Major League Baseball history, Bautista is the much better arm at this point in their careers.

Bautista is expected to return in 2025, giving Baltimore a big boost to the back end of their bullpen. However, there are other areas their bullpen could improve, which should be a focus for the front office in the winter.

Multiple relievers will be on the market. Some will likely be relatively cheap, helping the Orioles' chances of landing one.

Of those pitchers, Clay Holmes of the New York Yankees is among them. Baltimore fans might know better than anyone that Holmes isn't always reliable, but his stuff is above average.

If he's at his best, he's one of the better relievers in baseball and could be a big help to this bullpen.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic named the Orioles a fit for the right-hander, highlighting what he does at the top of his game.

"Clay Holmes appeared in more than 60 games for the third consecutive season, posting 30 saves before losing the closer job in August to Luke Weaver. However, he rebounded near the end of the season and performed well in high-leverage spots in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. He allowed only one run in his final eight appearances of the regular season and finished with a 3.14 ERA."

Bowden predicted his future contract, which came in at $18.5 million for two years.

If Holmes were to sign with Baltimore, their bullpen would likely be better in 2025 than last season. That doesn't mean they shouldn't add another arm to help with that, but with Bautista and Holmes, if healthy and throwing as well as they can, they should be in a good position.

Playing for the Yankees brings more pressure than playing for the Orioles. That's the hard truth about playing for a team in New York City, as the heat he's received in the Bronx would be much different in Baltimore.

It's possible that Holmes needs a change of scenery, as he profiles as an above-average arm with All-Star caliber stuff.

There would be some risk in signing him, but the same could be said for most pitchers available.