This winter, the New York Mets will lose more than half of their starting pitching rotation. This has led to rumors that the Mets are in on the best free agent arms of the summer, but that isn’t necessarily the case.
The Mets can acquire three pitchers for the rotation without spending $400 million, even though they need arms. Alternatively, they might choose to shop around, just like they did when they signed Luis Severino and Sean Manaea during the previous offseason.
The New York Post’s Joel Sherman recently revealed a really intriguing suggestion for the Mets. Sherman indicated that the Mets are considering acquiring Clay Holmes, a closer for the New York Yankees, as a starting pitcher rather than committing to the expensive starters.
The ability to throw two fastballs (four-seamer and sinker), two breaking balls (slider and sweeper), and the capacity to develop a changeup are what teams look for in Holmes in order to perhaps add him to the rotation. It is believed that the sinker is a dominant pitch. Additionally, Holmes has a history of being a reliable reliever,” Sherman said. Holmes might attempt to emulate King, a former Yankee teammate, and work as a rotation answer for the Mets. If that doesn’t work, the Mets need relievers, especially someone who can set up Edwin Diaz and possibly act as a safety net for him. Holmes has a big market as he can accomplish that from the pen.
If the Mets are not compelled to sign Holmes for starting money, this trade would be low risk, big payoff. Holmes is expected to sign a four-year contract worth $54 million, according to Spotrac. The Mets have a chance to succeed if they move him to a starting position, as several teams have done with other pitchers in the past. However, if Holmes is unable to perform and stumbles, he just returns to the bullpen as a high-leverage reliever for New York. It seems like a good idea to do this. The fit makes sense because the Mets have the funds and the necessity.
