New York Yankees' Biggest Surprise so far in Postseason

This player has been the New York Yankees' biggest surprise in the postseason so far.

Oct 9, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; New York Yankees relief pitcher Clay Holmes (35) pitches in the in the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals during game three of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-Imagn Images / Peter Aiken-Imagn Images

One of the New York Yankees' biggest question marks heading into the postseason was centered around what they would get out of demoted closer Clay Holmes.

Holmes lost the closer's role to Luke Weaver after surrendering a walk-off grand slam to Wyatt Langford of the Texas Rangers on Sept. 3. This appeared to be rock bottom for Holmes, who suffered his MLB-leading 13th blown save.

However, since moving out of the closer spot, Holmes has posted a 1.38 ERA across 13 innings between the regular season and postseason. The Yankees took the ALDS series from the Kansas City Royals, three games to one, and Holmes was a key factor, tossing five shutout innings in four appearances.

In his four ALDS relief appearances, Holmes threw his sinker 71% of the time out of the 58 pitches he tossed. The righty's sinker has been his most used pitch throughout his seven seasons in the major leagues and when it's right, it has correlated with his success on the mound.

It's fair to say that Holmes has been the Yankees' biggest surprise thus far in the playoffs. With the team moving on to either face the Detroit Tigers or Cleveland Indians in the ALCS, they will need Holmes to continue to be a reliable option in the late-innings of games.

Weaver, who notched saves in all three of the Yankees' ALDS victories, has been spectacular since taking over as the closer, but Holmes can play an important role as the setup man in the eighth inning to him.

The Yankees will need their bullpen to continue to dominate if they hope to capture both their first AL pennant as well as first World Series title since 2009. Holmes can play a big part in that and has been a nice surprise so far in October.