Clayton Walter Holmes (born March 27, 1993) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). Holmes was drafted by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

in the ninth round of the

2011 Major League Baseball draft The 2011 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2011, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Gerrit Cole out of the University of California, Los Angeles, with the first ...

. He made his MLB debut with the Pirates in 2018, and was traded to New York during the 2021 season.

Career

Pittsburgh Pirates

Holmes was drafted by the

in the ninth round of the

out of Slocomb High School in

Slocomb, Alabama Slocomb is a city in Geneva County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Dothan, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2020 census, the population was 2,082. The community is named after postmaster Frank W. Slocomb. Slocomb incor ...

. He signed with the Pirates, receiving a $1.2 million

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

, forgoing his commitment to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a public land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama. With more than 24,600 undergraduate students and a total enrollment of more than 30,000 with 1,330 faculty members, Auburn is the second largest uni ...

. Holmes made his professional debut in 2012 with the

State College Spikes The State College Spikes are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in State College, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park on the campus of Pennsylvania State University. The ...

and spent the whole season there, going 5–3 with a 2.28 ERA in 13 starts. He spent 2013 with the

West Virginia Power The Charleston Dirty Birds are an American professional baseball team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a partner league of Major League Baseball. The Dir ...

where he was 5–6 with a 4.08 ERA in 26 games (25 starts). He underwent

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...

in 2014 and missed the season. He returned in 2015 and made three rehab starts with the

Gulf Coast League Pirates The Florida Complex League Pirates are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Pirates. The team plays its h ...

before being assigned to the

Bradenton Marauders The Bradenton Marauders are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Bradenton, Florida, and play their home games at LECOM Park, which also serves as th ...

. In six starts for Bradenton, he struck out 16 batters in 23 innings and compiled a 2.74 ERA. Holmes spent 2016 with the

Altoona Curve The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of the ...

where he compiled a 10–9 record with a 4.22 ERA in 26 starts. The Pirates added Holmes to their 40-man roster after the 2016 season. In 2017, he pitched for the

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...

where he was 10–5 with a 3.36 ERA in 25 games (24 starts). Holmes began 2018 with the Indians. Pittsburgh called him up on April 1 as the 26th man for their doubleheader against the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

, but he did not make an appearance and was optioned back to Indianapolis before being recalled once again on April 2. He made his major league debut on April 6 against the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, pitching two innings in which he gave up one run on two hits while striking out two and walking none. He was optioned to Indianapolis on April 13. In 2019 for Pittsburgh, Holmes registered a 5.58 ERA with 10.1 K/9 in 50 innings out of the bullpen. In 2020 for the Pirates, Holmes only appeared in one game, pitching scoreless innings against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

in the season opener before being placed on the injured list on July 28 due to a right forearm strain and missing the remainder of the season. On December 2, Holmes was non-tendered by the Pirates. Holmes re-signed with the Pirates on a minor league contract on December 4. On April 1, 2021, Holmes was selected to the 40-man roster. In 44 appearances for the Pirates, Holmes pitched to a 4.93 ERA with 44 strikeouts in 42 innings.

New York Yankees

On July 26, 2021, the Pirates traded Holmes to the

in exchange for Diego Castillo and Hoy Park. He would make his Yankee debut against the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

, shutting down the batters in order. He would post a 1.61 ERA, 34 strikeouts and 0.79 WHIP in 28 innings with his new team. Overall, Holmes finished the season with an ERA of 3.60, a WHIP of 1.17 while striking out 78 batters in 70 innings. He was named American League Reliever of the Month in May, allowing no runs in 12 appearances. Holmes became the team's closer in May 2022, when

Aroldis Chapman Albertín Aroldis Chapman de la Cruz (; born February 28, 1988) is a Cuban-born American professional baseball relief pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees and Chica ...

went on the injured list. Holmes notched his 29th consecutive game without allowing a run on June 18, setting a new Yankees franchise record for consecutive scoreless appearances, breaking

Mariano Rivera Mariano Rivera (born November 29, 1969) is a Panamanian-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, from 1995 to 2013. Nicknamed "Mo" and "Sandman", he spent most ...

's record set in 1999. For the 2022 season, he was 7–4 with 20 saves and a 2.54 ERA. Holmes was one of six Yankees selected to the 2022 MLB All Star Game.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, Clay 1993 births Living people Sportspeople from Dothan, Alabama Baseball players from Alabama Major League Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players New York Yankees players American League All-Stars State College Spikes players West Virginia Power players Gulf Coast Pirates players Bradenton Marauders players Altoona Curve players Indianapolis Indians players