Tough luck, strong results: Clay Holmes shines again despite Mets' 2-1 loss

Clay Holmes is eight starts into his second season as a starting pitcher in MLB and has a 1. 86 ERA through 48. 1 IP.

The former Pirates and Yankees reliever followed last Saturday's gem with a tough-luck loss in Saturday's 2-1 defeat at the Diamondbacks, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out six and walking two in 5. 2 IP. "I thought I was able to limit the damage there that one inning," Holmes said, referencing his third inning in which he retired the first two batters before Arizona (18-20) loaded the bases and scored on Ildemaro Vargas 's single to left field.

"They had some balls get through in the infield, a couple groundballs, and they were able to scratch a couple across there. But I felt like I could hold 'em there and I'm just trying to get as deep as I can after that and keep it there at two. " Holmes, who retired his next nine batters before Nolan Arenado 's two-out single to right field in the sixth inning, threw 64 strikes on 103 pitches.

He threw a career-high 104 pitches June 19, 2025, at the Atlanta Braves. "You always want to finish on a strong note, but pitch count was getting to a certain spot where they wanted to go someone else," Holmes said. "But I feel like it ended well, and (Arenado) put a good swing on it and was able to get it there into right field.