Holmes Makes MLB Debut with Pirates on Friday

CHARLESTON, WV (April 7, 2018) - Four days after being recalled by the Pittsburgh Pirates, RHP Clay Holmes made his MLB debut with Pittsburgh on Friday, April 6, against the Cincinnati Reds. With his debut in the rearview mirror, Holmes becomes the 66th former Power player to take part in a Major League contest.
Holmes entered in the eighth inning of Friday's 14-3 triumph for the Pirates, with the 25-year-old tosssing the final two frames while allowing one run and two hits with two strikeouts. The righty also registered his first official MLB at-bat in the bottom of the eighth, striking out swinging on four pitches against Cincinnati's Jared Hughes.

The Dothan, Ala., native was selected in the ninth round of the 2011 MLB Draft by Pittsburgh out of Slocomb (Ala.) High School, but did not pitch professionally until 2012. After beginning his pro career with the State College Spikes in 2012, Holmes ascended to Charleston and spent all of 2013 with the West Virginia Power, entering the year as Pittsburgh's 10th-best prospect per Baseball America. During his lone season in the South Atlantic League, the six-foot, five-inch right-hander went 5-6 with a 4.08 ERA over 26 games (25 starts), registering 119.0 innings and 90 strikeouts while allowing 69 walks and a .240 batting average against him. Holmes led the team in starts and his 119.0 innings were second-most behind John Kuchno (123.1).
After missing all of 2014 due to Tommy John surgery, Holmes moved quickly through the ranks from the GCL in 2015 to Indianapolis in 2017, compiling a 3.67 ERA in 59 starts post-Tommy John surgery. The Tampa, Fla., resident recorded his best season in 2017 with the Indians, going 10-5 with a 3.36 ERA in 25 games (24 starts) while posting 112.2 innings and 99 strikeouts, with his 10 wins tied for the most in Pittsburgh's minor league system a year ago.
Overall, Holmes made 99 minor league appearances (97 starts) before his rise to the Major League ranks, accumulating a 31-25 record with a 3.59 ERA over 463.2 innings with 350 strikeouts and a .241 opponent average.
Holmes is the first Power player to make his MLB debut in 2018, and the first overall since Jordan Luplow took the field for Pittsburgh on July 28, 2017. For information on all of the former Power players who have logged time in the Major Leagues, visit www.wvpower.com.