{"id":18264,"date":"2026-03-12T20:26:04","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T03:26:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportrelay.com\/mlb\/?p=18264"},"modified":"2026-03-12T20:26:04","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T03:26:04","slug":"clay-holmes-will-depart-from-team-usa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportrelay.com\/mlb\/2026\/03\/12\/clay-holmes-will-depart-from-team-usa\/","title":{"rendered":"Clay Holmes Will Depart From Team USA"},"content":{"rendered":"

Righty Clay Holmes<\/strong><\/a> is expected to cut his stint at the 2026 World Baseball Classic short, departing from Team USA<\/a> on Thursday. He will rejoin the New York Mets<\/a>\u2019 spring training camp in Port St. Lucie, according to Anthony DiComo<\/a>\u00a0of MLB.com.<\/em><\/p>\n

Team USA was unable to confirm whether Holmes will receive a longer workload to prepare for this season, leading the Mets to want him back. But he\u2019s not alone in this early departure, as Matthew Boyd<\/strong><\/a> is expected to leave Team USA for the Chicago Cubs<\/a>\u2019 spring training camp. Not to mention, reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal<\/strong><\/a> will finish his preseason back at the Detroit Tigers<\/a>\u2019 camp.<\/p>\n

One and Done<\/h4>\n

Clay Holmes dominantly took the mound in his lone start for Team USA. In a pool play game against Great Britain, Holmes struck out six batters in three innings of relief. His performance earned praise from Team USA pitching coach Andy Pettitte<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been the standout for me so far. Clay was very impressive the other night, and if he can continue to do that and hold that kinda off stuff, over the course of this season, he\u2019s gonna make an awful amount of money,\u201d Pettitte said during an interview with SNY<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

With Clay Holmes leaving, Team USA could face issues with its bullpen depth. Tyler Rogers<\/strong><\/a> and Tim Hill<\/strong><\/a> were brought in to refurbish the pitching staff. Joe Ryan<\/strong><\/a> could earn a spot with Holmes and Skubal gone.<\/p>\n

Back to Work<\/h4>\n

Back in Port St. Lucie, Clay Holmes will get to start in Friday\u2019s spring training matchup against the Washington Nationals<\/a>. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza<\/strong><\/a> intends to have Holmes get up to 60-65 pitches in preparation for the upcoming season. Pitching for Team USA no longer made sense, as they were entering the championship round of the tournament.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Main Photo:
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>