Make it 28 straight scoreless appearances for Clay Holmes.
The breakout Yankees closer hung another zero on Wednesday night, locking down a tight 4-3 win for the Yanks while clinching a series win over the rival Rays in the Bronx. For Holmes, he still hasn’t given up a run since Opening Day, tossing 30 consecutive scoreless innings in that span.
“Straight dominance,” Aaron Judge said. “Every single time he comes out there, I feel like the game is over with. He attacks the strike zone, the movement on all his pitches, it’s unhittable.”
Isiah Kiner-Falefa said “Once we see him jog out, we know the game is over,” when asked about Holmes before Wednesday’s game, via Sports Illustrated, and Judge has a similar feeling when he sees the out-of-nowhere All-Star candidate take the mound.
“I kind of get on him after some of his outings, like ‘Hey man, you gotta give me some work out there,’” Judge said. “’I just kind of sit out there and take a nap when you come into the game.’”
Holmes rarely makes his ninth innings interesting, keeping over 80 percent of his plate appearances to either strikeouts or ground balls. His ERA on the season is now a microscopic 0.29. In his 30.2 innings of work this season, he has allowed just three walks, and in his last 15 appearances, has allowed one free pass against 17 strikeouts.
It’s the kind of historic dominance that puts closers up with the best of all time, as his 28 straight scoreless appearances is now tied with Mariano Rivera for most ever by a Yankee reliever, as Mo did it back in 1999 en route to a World Series MVP.
“It’s fun to play behind,” Judge said. “He’s gonna go out there and give it his all, and he’s gonna be a tough at-bat. I know that every single time he comes out.”
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