New York Yankees relief pitcher Clay Holmes picked up his first save of September on Sunday, finishing off the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 6-4 win. Holmes struck out one in his inning of work and didn't allow a baserunner. The veteran righty was removed from the closer's role in mid-September after blowing multiple saves (13 on the year) and has been working in lower-leverage roles since. In this one, the Yanks used new closer Luke Weaver in the eighth inning in a tie game. The Yankees then took the lead in the bottom of the inning and went with Holmes for the save in the ninth. This could mark a return to high leverage for Holmes, who has been good since being removed from the closer's role. They have no reason to move away from Weaver as the closer, but Holmes could make for a good setup man in the postseason.
New York Yankees relief pitcher Clay Holmes could be losing his grip on save opportunities. Jack Curry of the YES Network reported that manager Aaron Boone expressed that the team will get "creative with the closer role in the short term." Boone further expressed that Holmes should continue to be in the mix. While fantasy managers should not expect Holmes to immediately shift to a low-leverage role, his position as the bona fide ninth-inning option is shifting for now. Holmes surrendered four earned runs on Tuesday evening in his third blown save in his past ten innings. While the Yankee skipper did not mention any direct names of those who could see ninth-inning duties, fantasy managers should expect Mark Leiter Jr. to get one of the first chances as he typically pitches in the eighth inning and is worth stashing in deeper leagues if you are lacking in saves.
New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes secured the save in Friday night's win over the visiting Colorado Rockies at Yankee Stadium, hurling a scoreless ninth inning with one strikeout. Holmes tends to go on an adventure now and again in save situations, but Friday night offered no such theatrics as he induced a fly ball to center field from Rockies outfielder Nolan Jones to seal the save for New York against Colorado. The 31-year-old right-hander remains the Yankees' go-to stopper despite the occasional implosion here and there, registering a 2.77 ERA and 1.29 WHIP with 60 strikeouts and 16 walks while converting just 27 of his 37 save opportunities over 52 innings this season.
New York Yankees relief pitcher Clay Holmes is expected to remain the team's primary closer going forward. This comes after Holmes blew his 10th save of the season during Sunday's game against the Detroit Tigers. Manager Aaron Boone sounds committed to Holmes as a high-leverage option. However, Boone did mention that he'd be open to using Holmes in the eighth inning as well. If that happens, Tommy Kahnle or possibly Luke Weaver could see save chances down the stretch. Holmes holds a 2.88 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, and a 56/14 K/BB ratio across 50 innings. It's worth noting that Holmes has only converted 26 of his 36 save chances this season. Despite that, fantasy managers should be able to hang onto Holmes as a source for saves for the time being.
New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he's unsure who would be his closer on Monday night against the hosting Chicago White Sox with closer Clay Holmes unavailable after Sunday's heavy workload. "We'll see," Boone said. Holmes threw 45 pitches to pick up a four-out save in Sunday's win over the visiting Texas Rangers, so fantasy managers will want to put the 31-year-old veteran on their bench to kick off the new week. If a save situation arises on Monday night, the most likely candidates for a save opportunity in Chicago will be Tommy Kahnle or Luke Weaver. After resting on Monday, Holmes should be available for a save chance as early as Tuesday. He was an All-Star for the second time in his career this year and has already recorded a career-high 25 saves while posting a 2.81 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 24.6% strikeout rate in 48 innings out of the 'pen.
Clay Holmes Tosses Scoreless Ninth Inning For The Save
New York Yankees relief pitcher Clay Holmes bounced back nicely during Wednesday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. The right-hander coughed up a one-run lead on Tuesday for his eighth blown save of the season. Luckily on Wednesday, Holmes was able to fire a scoreless final frame to convert his 22nd save of the season. Despite his recent struggles, Holmes appears to be locked into the closer role in New York.
Clay Holmes Hit With Blown Save, Loss Against Orioles
New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes took his sixth blown save of the year on Sunday in the series finale against the division-rival Baltimore Orioles in a 6-5 loss. In addition to the blown save, Holmes also picked up his fourth loss of the year after giving up three runs (zero earned) on two hits while walking two and striking out one in two-thirds of an inning. Despite going into this week's All-Star break on a sour note, the 31-year-old veteran has been better than he was last year and currently is sporting a 2.77 ERA (2.73 FIP), a 1.31 WHIP, 21 saves, 41 strikeouts and only 10 walks in 39 innings of relief for the Yankees in 2024. Holmes has reached the 20-save mark for the third consecutive season and is only four saves away from setting a new career-high. On a Yankees team set to battle for the American League East title in the second half, Holmes remains a high-end fantasy closer.
New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes continued his impressive season on Thursday versus the Minnesota Twins. Holmes tossed a scoreless ninth inning and allowed one hit with one strikeout to record his 18th save on the season. Holmes has been having a dominant season out of the bullpen for the Yankees and has only allowed four earned runs on the season, all coming in one outing. The right-hander remains one of the best closers in the game and the save opportunities should continue to be there with the Yankees having one of the better teams in the league.
Clay Holmes Blows First Save of Season, Allows Four Runs
New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes blew his first save of the season and picked up the loss Monday night, allowing four runs and two walks in 2/3 of an inning pitched against the Seattle Mariners. Those four runs were the first runs allowed on the season for Holmes, who has been nothing short of spectacular in 2024. Monday's implosion ballooned his 2024 ERA from 0.00 to 1.74. It was, without a doubt, the worst appearance of the year for Holmes, who allowed five straight batters to reach base after inheriting a generous three-run lead. It will take much more than one blown save for Holmes' job to be in jeopardy. Despite blowing his first of the year, fantasy managers can continue to start Holmes in all leagues.
New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes earned his 11th save Saturday afternoon in a 5-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Holmes got four outs, two via strikeout, and remained unscored upon in 2024. Holmes also has a win to go along with his 0.00 ERA and 0.92 WHIP and 18 strikeouts in 16 innings. The save ties him for the MLB lead with the St. Louis Cardinals' Ryan Helsley. Continue to deploy Holmes in all leagues that have a saves category, even if you do not get the high volume of strikeouts you may like in a closer.