Clay, remolded: How Holmes found himself after midseason demotion

NEW YORK – There were a few hours before game time as Clay Holmes made the hard right turn into Aaron Boone’s office, finding a seat on a well-worn black leather couch. His expression was curious, evident to all in the room. Knowing that this would not be a proper time for chit-chat, the Yankees manager kept their exchange brief. The right-hander nodded, replying flatly: “Sweet. That’s awesome.”

As you may have guessed, this was not the conversation that removed Holmes from the closer’s role this past September. This scene is from July 2022, when Boone informed Holmes that he had been selected for his first All-Star Game. It is a perfect example of Holmes’ unflappable demeanor: his reaction then had been to dig a cell phone from his locker and send a group text message, alerting his family to begin pricing flights to Los Angeles.

That steady nature, in part, is why the Yankees believed Holmes would rebound after Luke Weaver was plugged in as the new late-inning fireman. He believed it, too.

“My confidence, my identity, who I am and what I can do is not really tied into some title that’s given to me,” Holmes said. “Obviously it’s an honor and a great thing, but knowing who I am, knowing what I’m capable of and the pitcher I can be -- the person I am -- those things weren’t stripped away.”

That has held true in October, where Holmes is starring as an indispensable part of a dominant bullpen that has the Bombers two victories from their first World Series appearance since 2009. Holmes has taken the mound in all six of the Yankees’ playoff games, limiting opponents to three hits and two walks across 6 2/3 scoreless innings, with five strikeouts.

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“I knew the things I needed to do to be successful, to help this team be the most successful that we can,” Holmes said. “For me, it was just refocusing on those things and getting back to being my best. When I’m at my best, my sinker is really good. I made it a point to figure that out and start throwing that more. It’s been there, and I’m starting to have some success with that again.”

Holmes was charged with a Major League-leading 13 blown saves during the regular season, the most by a Yankee since Dave Righetti (13) in 1987, while converting 30 saves and pitching to a 3.14 ERA across 67 appearances. Despite several high-profile stumbles, Boone steadfastly believed Holmes would get back to registering important outs.

“I never felt like he was far off,” Boone said. “There was a stretch where he got hit hard a couple times and lost some saves, but he never really was erratic with his command, and the stuff was all there. … I always felt like even though I changed the role a little bit, knew he had everything to handle it, especially being a really good pitcher. It's been good to see him really finish the season as strong as he did, and obviously pitching as well as he is for us right now.”

Late in the season, Holmes appeared to be trusting his slider more than his sinker, but he saw improvement after adjusting his sinker grip in September. Yankees reliever Tommy Kahnle identified Holmes reincorporating his four-seam fastball, a long-shelved offering that has re-appeared during the playoffs, as another key to his turnaround.

“He just kept working on his craft, kept getting everything kind of back into rhythm,” Kahnle said. “I think a big thing was getting his fastball back and using his fastball more. I know we were trying to get him to use it more. And I feel like over the last month-ish, he's gone back to his heater, and he's even been throwing four-seam fastballs, which has been amazing.”

A potential free agent, Holmes isn’t likely to return to the closer’s role this postseason – not with Weaver doing his best Mariano Rivera impression and simultaneously delighting fans with quirky on-camera comments like comparing himself to “a wild jungle cat.” Weaver credits Holmes’ presence and team-first attitude for helping him flourish, squashing any awkwardness that might have stemmed from the switch.

“Clay is first and foremost one of the better dudes I've been around. This guy cares a lot,” Weaver said. “He has an ability to let things go quicker than most, definitely better than I do. It doesn't mean he doesn't care, but he has an ability to keep him consistent as a human being, come back the next day, and he wants the ball.”

Said Boone: “I think [Holmes] handled it well. I don't think he was happy about it or anything like that, but also he's the ultimate pro, too. As we've talked about throughout this year as questions have come up, he handles the highs and lows that can go with that job really, really well. He's just such a rock-solid person, and at the end of the day, a really, really good pitcher.”

No matter how this postseason turns out, Holmes said that pitching for the Yankees has fulfilled a dream.

Acquired from the Pirates in July 2021 (he was standing in the check-out line of a Pittsburgh Target when he learned of the trade, buying bottled water and a fresh tube of toothpaste), Holmes once recounted how he’d been 8 years old in Slocomb, Ala., a city of 2,094 and the self-proclaimed “home of the tomato,” where he pitched and played third base for a youth baseball team that borrowed the Yankees’ nickname.

Holmes’ father, Wendell, was a local pastor who also served as the team’s coach. One day in 2001, Wendell Holmes mailed a letter to Yankee Stadium, asking if the team would donate souvenirs to the boys on his team. Two boxes soon appeared on the Holmes’ doorstep containing Yankees caps with the World Series logo stitched on the sides. The kids cheered, and though Holmes grew up in Braves country, Yankees memorabilia would forever adorn the walls of his childhood bedroom.

He’d love to help deliver the Yankees’ next championship -- no matter what innings they ask him to pitch.

“That’s what we all strive for and hope for,” Holmes said. “We all have this vision of how great it would be to rally the city, the fans and all that would come along with it. But I think it’s probably better than anything we can imagine.”