Yesterday on March 14th 2025, Clay Holmes was announced as the Mets opening day starter for the 2025 season. What a monumental moment and surprising turnaround for a pitcher who has spent the past four seasons in the Yankee’s bullpen quickly turn it around and become a starter. A year after collecting 30 saves to a 3.14 era for the Bronx Bombers he moves on and changes his pitches to become a starter. From relief to ace, many pitchers have experienced the swift turnaround most notably the likes of Seth Lugo with the Royals and Michael King with the Padres. Holmes wanted to make the next step forward of solidifying himself back into the rotation for the first time since 2018.

Clay Holmes did the proper measurements to adjust to the 100-120 pitch workload his body will have to get used to and decided to add more pitches to his arsenal. Primarily relying on three main pitches, the sinker which was known for inducing ground balls, a slider which offered a different breaking ball pattern and his sweeper which was a variation of his slider with stronger horizontal movement and considered one of the best pitches in baseball. This spring Holmes added a Four-Seam fastball and a changeup to enhance his pitching repertoire and make him one of the more intimidating guys to face.

During the 2025 spring training, Clay Holmes has made three starts for the Mets and delivered some of his best performances in years. Over 9⅔ innings of work he has yet to allow a run and yielding only two hits while striking out 13 batters. On March 9th, he threw 67 pitches over almost four innings of work delivering eight strikeouts and three walks. His performance then earned him the spot to be the opening day starter against the Houston Astros later this month.

On the flip side, the Yankees are facing a brutal start to the 2025 season. They’ll be without Gerrit Cole for the entire year, AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil to begin the season, and Giancarlo Stanton—who looks set to miss his first Opening Day and potentially the entire campaign. Adding insult to injury, they not only lost Juan Soto to the Mets but also fell short in the World Series against the Dodgers. These crosstown rivals have endured a disastrous past six months, making Clay Holmes’ resurgence all the more poetic. Once heavily scrutinized in the Bronx for his shaky performances as a closer, Holmes has left behind Yankee Stadium’s pressure cooker and found new life in Queens. As the Mets’ window of contention swings wide open, the Yankees’ ship seems to be sinking fast. Never say never—but never doubt that a reliever once dismissed in the Bronx can reinvent himself as a starter. After all, Michael King became a dominant ace in 2024.