2 moves the NY Mets should make if the Clay Holmes injury is worse than expected

Clay Holmes left Friday’s start early with a hamstring injury, reminding us all how lucky the New York Mets have been with their pitching health to begin the year. Old-lady injury wasn’t going to stay away forever. And if Holmes is landing on the IL, the team is going to need someone to start before their next off-day scheduled which isn’t until after Wednesday’s finale versus the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Holmes spoke after the game with optimism about making his next appearance. He took a “let’s give it a sleep, and maybe a few days” approach. It’s reasonable even if it can spoil some planning.

There’s no skipping over Holmes’ spot in the rotation. Instead, the Mets will need to fill the rotation spot. Do they do it with a prospect? Nah. They can better structure their entire pitching staff with two moves if Holmes isn’t healing up as planned.

The rotation replacement should be Sean Manaea

Tobias Myers was the one who replaced Holmes on the mound so he’s already perfectly set up to start the next time Holmes’ turn in the rotation comes around. Even if Myers isn’t 5+ innings capable, he should be able to handle it well enough to get through. Why not choose him? It’s all about the opponent.

The Dodgers are stacked with lefties. Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, and Kyle Tucker are just three dangerous bats swinging from that side of the plate. While all three are capable of hitting southpaws, the team went into Friday with a batting average about 30 points higher against right-handed pitchers.

Let the rotation spot be fluid with Manaea as the first one up, not because of his ability or salary but because he looks like the better option against the Dodgers.

The roster replacement should be Austin Warren

Six innings, one earned run, and a presence on the 40-man roster already makes Austin Warren the obvious next choice to come back to the majors. Anderson Severino has yet to allow a run this year in Triple-A and having him in the bullpen might not be a bad idea for a third lefty with Manaea now slotted in as a starter. That would require a separate roster move which isn’t impossible with Alex Carrillo and Joey Gerber clogging up spots.

Warren allowed only one run in 9.1 innings for the Mets last year in 5 appearances. He has shown he can go multiple frames at a time, making him a pseudo-longman but more so a piece to use in blowouts; as if the Mets don’t already have enough relievers who’d fit that role well.

In addition to the cleanliness of his 1.50 ERA, Warren has struck out 7 in 6 innings and allowed one walk. It won’t make headlines, but it’ll be a logical choice. Based on the way Luis Garcia and Richard Lovelady have performed, it’s not crazy for him to outpitch either.