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Jorge Castillo, ESPN Staff Writer
The New York Yankees‘ bullpen, after posting the lowest ERA in the majors in 2023, is a very different group this season. Key players departed over the winter, replaced by relatively obscure newcomers, while others are out early with injuries. A decline would’ve made sense.
But the Yankees’ relief corps is again among the best in the sport, with the second-highest Win Probability Added and second-best ERA in the majors. The anchor is the most prominent holdover: Clay Holmes, the only qualified reliever yet to surrender an earned run in 2024.
With the Yankees off to a 27-15 start, fueled in part by their standout bullpen, Holmes just might be the best closer in baseball.
“STUD — all capital letters there,” Yankees reliever Luke Weaver said.
Holmes, in his second full season as New York’s closer, has registered 21 strikeouts with three walks in 17⅓ innings and leads the American League with 12 saves. And ask anybody in the Yankees’ clubhouse: Holmes’ performance in Baltimore earlier this month is still a talker.
The Yankees, six outs from victory, were nursing a 2-0 lead after falling to the Orioles in the first two games of the four-game series. A third straight loss to their chief competition for the American League East would be as backbreaking as it gets on May 1. The first two Orioles reached base in the bottom of the frame. Moments later, with one out and the top of the Orioles’ order looming, Yankees manager Aaron Boone summoned Holmes for a five-out save. What followed was an electric, eye-popping performance.
Holmes struck out Gunnar Henderson, named the American League Player of the Month two days later, with a pair of sharp sliders and a 97 mph sinker. He then whiffed Adley Rutschman, the Orioles’ All-Star catcher, on two hard sinkers over the plate, followed by a slider that nearly dropped Rutschman to a knee. Crisis averted. Holmes then kept the middle of the Orioles’ explosive lineup scoreless in the ninth to secure the victory.
“That’s about as nasty as it gets,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said after watching the display. “When you’re throwing 97 mph bowling balls with a slider, it’s going to be tough to score against.”
Veteran catcher Jose Trevino was around for Holmes’ All-Star season in 2022. He has caught some of Holmes’ most dominant outings. But that was the best he has ever seen from the closer.
“And I told him that,” Trevino said.
Now in his fourth season with the Yankees, Holmes has the second-highest ERA+ ever for a Yankees reliever with at least 160 appearances — behind only Mariano Rivera. He was an All-Star in 2022, snatching the closer job from Aroldis Chapman midseason. He was effective again in 2023, his first full season in the role, with a 152 ERA+ in 66 appearances.
But he has been even better in 2024. And with Holmes starring at the back end, the Yankees’ bullpen boasts a 2.69 ERA, trailing only the Cleveland Guardians, even after a near meltdown Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays. All this despite the significant year-over-year turnover.
Michael King, the Yankees’ shutdown multi-inning weapon last season, was traded as part of the package for Juan Soto. Wandy Peralta, their best left-hander in 2023, is also in San Diego, after signing a four-year deal with the Padres in free agency. The hard-throwing Jonathan Loáisiga underwent season-ending elbow surgery after three appearances last month. Tommy Kahnle, currently on a minor league rehab assignment, has yet to throw a pitch in the majors this year.
The Yankees acquired left-handers Caleb Ferguson and Victor González from the Dodgers during the offseason. They signed Dennis Santana, on his fourth team in four years, to a minor league deal. They converted Weaver, a 30-year-old former first-round pick, from starter to reliever.
Ian Hamilton, one of the few relievers from 2023 still on the roster, had allowed eight earned runs in 15 appearances over three seasons when he signed with the Yankees before the start of last season. The 28-year-old right-hander was a revelation, recording a 2.64 ERA with 69 strikeouts in 39 games.
“There’s a lot of reassurance, of showing what we do can get people out all the time,” Hamilton said of the Yankees’ coaching staff. “It sounds ridiculous, but then [there’s] the Yankee Effect. When you’re in the bullpen here, you just want to perform, and you want to show off for the Yankees. It doesn’t make it easy, but that motivation is like always here. There’s always that drive.”
Boone credited the Yankees’ front office for its ability to identify undervalued arms and maximize their abilities. The expertise has produced bullpens that have finished in the top five in ERA over the past three seasons. Nobody embodies the organization’s knack for bullpen construction better than Holmes.
The Yankees acquired the 6-foot-5 right-hander from the Pittsburgh Pirates in July 2021 for infielders Diego Castillo and Hoy Park. Holmes had a 4.93 ERA in 42 innings that season at the time of the trade. He owned a 5.57 career ERA over parts of four seasons. Nothing indicated dominance was around the corner.
“We feel like he’s going to be a guy that is already very tough on righties,” Boone said at the time, “but we feel like he has the stuff and the repertoire to go to another place.”
The Yankees had Holmes ditch his curveball for a sweeper to complement his sinker and gyro slider. The sweeper, a slider with a bigger break, plays better against right-handed hitters. The gyro slider, a harder offering, is more effective against lefties. He allowed just five runs in 25 outings to close the regular season.
Three years later, Holmes has yet to give up a hit on either of his sliders while posting the second-highest ground ball rate (71.1%) among qualified relievers behind a devastating sinker averaging 96.3 mph. He has a 61.5% whiff rate on the 34 sweepers he has thrown — all to righties — with six strikeouts. His gyro slider ranks as the best slider in the majors, according to the stat Run Value/100 Pitches.
“A lot of it for me is nailing my direction,” Holmes said. “I’m able to just move down the mound faster and I just think it helps my body move a little better. Just kind of knowing my lanes, the direction I need to get going. It’s a product of me just moving down the mound better. It frees up my arm. The stuff moves from that.”
Holmes’ only blemish so far this season came after shortstop Anthony Volpe‘s error on a routine play led to three unearned runs in the 10th inning of a win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 3. On Friday, the Rays nearly ended his scoreless innings streak, but he escaped a bases-loaded jam with his third strikeout of the inning, closing out a 2-0 win and keeping his 0.00 ERA.
“Clay’s pretty much the same person every day: Calm,” Hamilton said. “He’s ready to get put in the game pretty much any day. However many times it takes.”
The Department of Defense restored a story on its website highlighting Jackie Robinson’s military service Wednesday after deleting it as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to purge references to diversity, equity and inclusion through a “digital content refresh.”
While it does not make any references to DEI, the story on Robinson was among a swath scrubbed from government websites in recent days. Before the story on Robinson’s service was restored, the URL had redirected to one that added the letters “dei” in front of “sports-heroes.”
In a statement sent by the Pentagon at 1:24 p.m. ET Wednesday, press secretary John Ullyot cited Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in saying “DEI is dead at the Defense Department” and said the Department of Defense was “pleased by the rapid compliance” that led to the erasing of stories on Robinson, Navajo Code Talkers and Ira Hayes, one of six Marines who raised the American flag at Iwo Jima.
At 2:46 p.m. ET, Ullyot released an updated statement.
“Everyone at the Defense Department loves Jackie Robinson, as well as the Navajo Code Talkers, the Tuskegee airmen, the Marines at Iwo Jima and so many others — we salute them for their strong and in many cases heroic service to our country, full stop,” the updated statement said. “We do not view or highlight them through the prism of immutable characteristics, such as race, ethnicity, or sex. We do so only by recognizing their patriotism and dedication to the warfighting mission like ever other American who has worn the uniform.
“In the rare cases that content is removed — either deliberately or by mistake — that is out of the clearly outlined scope of the directive, we instruct the components and they correct the content so it recognizes our heroes for their dedicated service alongside their fellow Americans, period.”
By 3:09 p.m. ET, the story was restored with its original URL. The Department of Defense declined to answer questions from ESPN as to whether the removal of Robinson’s story was deliberate or mistaken.
Robinson, who served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army during World War II, broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers. One of the most integral figures in American sports history, Robinson won the National League MVP and Rookie of the Year awards during a 10-year career that led to a first-ballot induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
The story is part of the Department of Defense’s “Sports Heroes Who Served” series. Other stories, including one on Pee Wee Reese that references his acceptance of Robinson, his teammate, amid racial tensions in his first season, remained on the site during the time Robinson’s story was scrubbed. The Department of Defense also removed a website that celebrated Charles Calvin Rogers, who received the Medal of Honor, but later reestablished the site, according to The Washington Post.
Robinson was drafted into military service in 1942 and eventually joined the 761st Tank Battalion, also known as the Black Panthers. He was court-martialed in July 1944 after he refused an order by a driver to move to the back of an Army bus he had boarded. Robinson was acquitted and coached Army athletics teams until his honorable discharge in November 1944.
Robinson, who died in 1972, remains an ever-present figure in MLB, with his No. 42 permanently retired in 1997. On April 15 every year, the league celebrates Jackie Robinson Day, honoring the date of his debut with the Dodgers by having every player in the majors wear his jersey number. Last year, Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, who is 102 years old, attended the April 15 game between the New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field.
On Feb. 20, Trump announced plans to build statues of Robinson, boxing icon Muhammad Ali and NBA star Kobe Bryant in the National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture park he proposed during his first administration.
ESPN’s William Weinbaum contributed to this report.
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Adam Rittenberg
COLUMBUS, Ohio — At the NFL scouting combine last month in Indianapolis, Ohio State‘s draft hopefuls talked about Julian Sayin as the likely choice to be the team’s next starting quarterback.
“Julian’s that guy, to be honest with you,” cornerback Denzel Burke told reporters.
“Now it’s his time,” added quarterback Will Howard, the man Sayin and two others will try to replace for the defending national champions.
But Sayin isn’t viewing the starting job as his quite yet. The redshirt freshman is focused on spring practice, which kicked off Monday, and operating in a quarterback room that has been reduced by Howard’s exit and the transfers of Devin Brown (Cal) and Air Noland (South Carolina). Junior Lincoln Kienholz and freshman Tavien St. Clair, a midyear enrollee, were the other two quarterbacks practicing Wednesday.
“You have to block out the noise,” said Sayin, who transferred to Ohio State from Alabama after Nick Saban retired in January 2024. “I’m just focusing on spring practice and just getting better.”
Quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler said Ohio State is “a long way away” from even discussing the closeness of the competition. Fessler, promoted to quarterbacks coach after serving as an offensive analyst last season, is evaluating how the three quarterbacks handle more practice reps, and areas such as consistency and toughness.
He’s confident any of the three can handle being Ohio State’s starting quarterback and the magnitude the job brings, even though none have the experience Howard brought in when he transferred from Kansas State.
“A lot of that was done in the recruitment process,” Fessler said. “I’m confident all three of them could be the guy. Those guys already check that box. So now it’s just a matter of who goes out and wins the job. And again, we are so far away from that point.”
Sayin, ESPN’s No. 9 recruit in the 2024 class, has been praised for a lightning-quick release. He appeared in four games last season, completing 5 of 12 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.
“We continue to work to build that arm strength, to strengthen his core, to work rotationally, because he is such a rotational thrower, to be able to maximize his movements, both between his lower half and his upper hats, so you can get that ball out with velocity and be successful,” Fessler said. “So he definitely has a quick release, but there’s so much more to playing the position.”
Sayin added about 10 pounds during the offseason and checks in at 203 for spring practice. He’s working to master both on-field skills and the intangible elements, where Howard thrived, saying, “There’s a lot that comes to being a quarterback here besides what you do on the field.”
Kienholz, a three-star recruit, saw the field in 2023, mostly in a Cotton Bowl loss to Missouri, where he completed 6 of 17 pass attempts. He also added weight in the winter, going from around 185 pounds to 207.
“The past few years, I’ve had older guys in front of me and just getting to learn from them on how to be a leader and how to take control,” he said. “Now I’m the oldest guy in the room, so I feel that now, and I kind of feel more confident.”
Buckeyes coach Ryan Day has challenged the quarterbacks to be the hardest workers on the team, and to sustain that ethic.
“I know every single one of them saw that quote by Coach Day, which is pretty awesome,” Fessler said. “It’s so real. It’s who we have to be — the toughest guys in the building, and the hardest-working guys in the building.”
The Department of Defense deleted a story on its website that highlighted Jackie Robinson’s military service, with the original URL redirecting to one that added the letters “dei” in front of “sports-heroes.”
The scrubbing of the page followed a Feb. 27 memo from the Pentagon that called for a “digital content refresh” that would “remove and archive DoD news articles, photos, and videos promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).”
The Department of Defense did not respond to requests for comment by ESPN.
“We are aware and looking into it,” an MLB spokesperson said.
Robinson, who served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army during World War II, broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers. One of the most integral figures in American sports history, Robinson won the National League MVP and Rookie of the Year awards during a 10-year career that led to a first-ballot induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
The deleted story was part of the Department of Defense’s “Sports Heroes Who Served” series. Other stories, including one on Robinson’s teammate Pee-Wee Reese that references his acceptance of Robinson amid racial tensions in his first season, remain on the site.
Robinson was drafted into military service in 1942 and eventually joined the 761st Tank Battalion, also known as the Black Panthers. He was court-martialed in July 1944 after he refused an order by a driver to move to the back of an Army bus he had boarded. Robinson was acquitted and coached Army athletics teams until his honorable discharge in November 1944.
Robinson, who died in 1972, remains an ever-present figure in MLB, with his No. 42 permanently retired in 1997. On April 15 every year, the league celebrates Jackie Robinson Day, honoring the date of his debut with the Dodgers by having every player in the majors wear his jersey number. Last year, Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, who is 102 years old, attended the April 15 game between the New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field.
Martin Luther King Jr. said Robinson’s trailblazing efforts in baseball made his own success possible, and Robinson joined King on the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement.
“The life of Jackie Robinson represents America at its best,” Leonard Coleman, the former National League president and chairman of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, told ESPN. “Removing an icon and Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient from government websites represents America at its worst.”
The removal of Robinson’s story reflects other efforts by the Pentagon to follow a series of executive orders by President Donald Trump to purge DEI from the federal government. A story on Ira Hayes, a Native American who was one of the Marines to raise the American flag at Iwo Jima, was removed with a URL relabeled with “dei,” according to The Washington Post. Other stories about Navajo code talkers, who were lauded for their bravery covertly relaying messages in World War I and World War II, were likewise deleted, according to Axios.
The Department of Defense also removed a website that celebrated Charles Calvin Rogers, a Black general who received the Medal of Honor, but it later reestablished the site, according to the Post.
On Feb. 20, Trump announced plans to build statues of Robinson, boxing icon Muhammad Ali and NBA star Kobe Bryant in the National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture park he proposed during his first administration.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan and William Weinbaum contributed to this report.
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