New York Yankees closer Clay Holmes was a surprising All-Star selection this season despite being in the middle of a disastrous campaign.
During the Little League Classic in Williamsport on Sunday night, Yankees starter Marcus Stroman went toe-to-toe with Detroit Tigers starter and Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal.
Stroman's six shutout innings were all for naught, though, as Holmes' continuous struggles to shut the door plagued the Yankees yet again.
Entering the ninth inning with a 1-0 lead, Holmes gave up two hits and one run while striking out three on 22 pitches (13 strikes).
Holmes gave up a one-out double to Colt Keith on a sinker in the middle of the zone before striking out Spencer Torkelson. Rookie Jace Jung came through with a two-out RBI single to left field to complete the blown save.
It was Holmes' 10th blown save of the season, the most in Major League Baseball. It's also the first time since Dave Righetti in 1987 that a Yankees closer has blown 10 saves in a single season, according to Stathead.
Among pitchers with at least 20 save opportunities, Holmes ranks dead last in save percentage (72.4%)
Some of it has been bad luck. Holmes has done a strong job of inducing soft contact with his barrel rate and hard-hit rate sitting in the 89th and 67th percentiles, respectively, according to Statcast.
But far too many times this season the Yankees squandered a chance to win because Holmes couldn't get the team over the edge to close the door.
It doesn't seem like the Yankees are going to make a change in his role at this point, but it very much could be an issue during the playoffs.
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