Top pick Holmes shines in pro debut

Right-hander Grant Holmes, the Dodgers' first-round pick in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft, threw two scoreless innings in his professional debut Wednesday, helping the Rookie-level Dodgers defeat the Mariners, 5-2, in the Arizona League.

Holmes struck out five batters and walked one. Outfielder Alex Verdugo, the Dodgers' second-round pick, went 1-for-2 with a double, a run and three walks.

The Dodgers selected Holmes out of Conway (S.C.) High School with the 22nd overall pick June 5. He signed with the Dodgers two weeks later and officially got his career underway Wednesday.

Holmes began the game in the bullpen and relieved starter Carlos Felix to start the fourth inning. He struck out the first batter he faced -- Alex Jackson, the sixth overall pick of the Draft. Holmes' lone blemish was a two-out walk in the fourth inning, before finishing his outing emphatically by striking out the side in the fifth.

Holmes went 4-1 with a 0.35 ERA and 82 strikeouts in 40 innings for Conway this spring. He had committed to Florida before signing with the Dodgers.