Three Fantasy Baseball Landing Spots For Clay Holmes

The Mets are far behind preseason expectations and may be looking to ship off some players heading into the trade deadline, including Clay Holmes. These three AL teams offer Holmes a Fantasy-Baseball lifeline.

New York Mets pitcher Clay Holmes (35) delivers a pitch during the third inning against the New York Yankees at Citi Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Starting pitcher Clay Holmes recently threw a live batting practice on July 10th as the two-time All Star continues to rehab from a broken leg suffered against the New York Yankees on May 15th. 

As Holmes eyes his return, the New York Mets continue to fall short of lofty expectations after a spending extravaganza this offseason. 

With the Mets possibly in sell mode as the trade deadline approaches, Holmes offers Fantasy value and real life value in a potential move out of the Big Apple. 

Clay Holmes "looked like Clay" during his live BP today, says Andy Green pic.twitter.com/8W5pRlzhOs

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) July 10, 2026

Texas Rangers

Holmes had a strong start to the season with a 2.39 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 52.2 innings pitched before landing on the 60-day injured list. 

The AL-West leading Rangers could use Holmes’ services in the middle of their rotation to make their first playoffs appearance since winning the 2023 World Series. 

A move to the AL West could help Holmes see a spike in strikeouts, helping bump his Fantasy ceiling.

Three of the four Rangers’ AL West opponents rank in the top 10 for most strikeouts by their batters. 

Holmes’ 7.7 strikeouts per nine innings this season combined with playing in a strikeout-susceptible division can bolster the 33-year-old’s Fantasy production in this potential move. 

Holmes has prior success pitching against AL West foes as Holmes has a 0.84 career ERA against the A’s and a 1.88 career ERA against the Angels. 

Chicago White Sox

The surprise of the season, the White Sox are currently tied for the AL Central Lead with the Cleveland Guardians.

Outside of Davis Martin and Sean Burke, the White Sox rotation has been shaky. Adding Holmes can help bolster the middle of the rotation and bring along Fantasy value along the way. 

Moving to a top-10 offense in runs scored will help Holmes battle for more wins, adding on to his Fantasy value. 

The Mets offense is way behind expectations as they rank 23rd in runs scored. Potentially moving on from a shaky offense to a more potent one gives Holmes more opportunities to pitch with a lead and leave games with a possibility to etch a W next to his name in the box score. 

Playing behind a strong offense also means Holmes doesn’t have to pitch a gem to be in line for a win bonus. Holmes can give up a couple runs and still battle for the win bonus.

Playing with a higher-scoring offense bolsters Holmes’ Fantasy value as he would be in contention for more wins and doesn’t have to pitch gems to receive a win bonus, helping his Fantasy score. 

Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox are amidst a wild-card chase, sitting just half a game behind the last wild-card spot. 

The Red Sox could look to add a right-handed starter to their rotation to give opposing hitters a different look as all Red Sox starters outside of Sonny Gray are lefties. 

Holmes potentially moving to the AL East would bring a sense of familiarity as Holmes spent time as Yankee from 2021-2024. 

Some of Holmes' best numbers came while opposing AL East foes, particularly the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles. 

Returning to a division where he had success as a relief pitcher would bring Fantasy value to Holmes, who would return as a starting pitcher in the potential move.