PHOENIX -- Clay Holmes came up just short of a quality start, but that didn’t diminish the quality of his appearance.
Holmes threw 103 pitches in the Mets’ 2-1 loss to the Diamondbacks on Saturday – 64 for strikes – but allowed just five hits and two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings. The 33-year-old picked up his third loss of the season, but his bottom line didn’t change much at all. The veteran righty now has a 1.86 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP while holding the opposition to a .190 batting average.
Holmes has allowed two or fewer runs in all eight of his starts this year, which is the longest such streak by a starter to open a season in Mets history. Johan Santana (2009) and Nolan Ryan (1971) held the previous mark, which was seven.
“When I'm in the zone and don’t give free passes, I set myself up for success,” Holmes said. “Between the sinker, changeup, curveball and sweeper, I should be able to get guys on the ground and really limit the damage.”
He missed earning his fifth quality start of the season by just one out.
Holmes has induced ground balls on 70 of his 630 pitches this season (11.1 percent), which ranks fifth among players who have thrown at least 500 pitches. Manager Carlos Mendoza said that ability has made him a formidable starter this season, and it shows in the box score.
Holmes is posting his best numbers as a starter by far after finishing last season 12-8 with a 3.53 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP in 31 starts.
“There’s a lot to like from him,” Mendoza said. “I like his ability to get ground balls, his ability to make pitches when he needs to, his ability to slow the game down, his understanding of the situation, attacking hitters, and getting strike one using the sinker.”
The only trouble Holmes ran into came in the bottom of the third after allowing four consecutive baserunners with two outs. Arizona’s Ildemaro Vargas punched a two-run single to left field, which ultimately proved to be all the offense the D-backs needed en route to the win.
Austin Warren fanned one and allowed one hit in 1 1/3 innings of relief, while Craig Kimbrel struck out one while issuing two walks in one inning.
Though neither reliever allowed any runs, New York was unable to muster any more offense beyond third baseman Brett Baty’s two-out RBI double in the top of the second. It was a rare offensive bright spot for Baty this season, who recorded his first RBI since April 24, but the Mets’ bats then fell silent.
Merrill Kelly allowed just one hit after that – a fifth-inning double to Tyrone Taylor.
“[Kelly] threw strikes, he moved the ball, but he gave us pitches to hit,” Mendoza said. “We missed some good pitches to hit, and then he moved the ball around, kept us off balance, and we couldn't create much off it."
Those missed opportunities prevented New York from breaking through on the scoreboard, putting Arizona’s two-run third inning even more under the microscope.
“That inning they had some balls get through and they were able to scratch a couple out there,” Holmes said. “I felt like I could hold them there, and I was just trying to get as deep as I can after that."
New York wraps up its nine-game road trip on Sunday at Chase Field, returning home to host the Tigers on Tuesday. The Mets are 5-3 so far on the trip, with series wins over the Angels and Rockies.
One more game – a Mother’s Day matinee – separates New York from six consecutive home games.
“We'll come back tomorrow with an opportunity to win another series,” Mendoza said, “and finish off a pretty good road trip.”