New York Mets’ Bizarre Roster Decision Raises Serious Concerns

The New York Mets stole headlines earlier this MLB offseason when they signed Juan Soto to a massive 15-year, $765 million contract that can crest over $800 million in incentives.

It was the largest contract in the history of professional sports, and it gave Mets fans some bragging rights over the New York Yankees for a change.

However, while the Mets did manage to steal Soto away from their crosstown rivals, they didn’t really do a whole lot else to address their biggest issues the past several months.

New York had considerable holes in its starting rotation, for example, but the Mets largely struck out on acquiring pitchers in free agency. As a matter of fact, their biggest acquisition in that regard was signing another ex-Yankee in Clay Holmes.

But here’s the thing: Holmes has been a relief pitcher for the vast majority of his big-league career. Outside of starting four games with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2018, Holmes has made 311 appearances out of the bullpen. Yet, the Mets have decided to convert him into a starter.

It gets worse, too: New York has decided to roll with Holmes as its opening-day starter, manager Carlos Mendoza announced Friday.

With both Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea recovering from injuries, the Mets don’t really have a whole lot of options, so evidently, Mendoza feels that going with Holmes is the best choice they have.

That doesn’t exactly spell good news for the Amazins heading into 2025, especially considering Holmes posted a 1.302 WHIP over 63 innings of work last season.

But perhaps Holmes will surprise us.