Spring Scouting: New Pitches Already!
Clay Holmes Changeup, Jack Leiter Sinker
Welcome to “Spring Scouting” which aims to highlight any intriguing Spring Training players or storylines. This article will cover some new pitches we saw from the first few days of Spring Training
Clay Holmes (New Changeup & Cutter)
Holmes could not have asked for a better Mets debut as he tossed 3 perfect innings with 3 K against Houston’s “B Squad”. The results are not what matters here though; we were given a glimpse at Holmes’ new arsenal as he transitions into a starting role.
The most notable aspect of Holmes’ profile is his ability to leverage seam effects to generate a ton of movement on his sinker. This same phenomenon can be applied to changeups and splitters to get offerings to induce outlier movement. In Holmes’ case, he added a “kick changeup” which allows him to generate significant drop on the pitch while also being faster than a typical changeup. In his start yesterday, the pitch averaged 88.8 MPH with similar arm side run as his sinker and nearly 4” of iVB separation. Ben Brewster of Tread Athletics highlighted that the amount of depth on Holmes’ new changeup this was on the lighter side, stating:
“And this was not a particularly depthy day for the kick change. It's been averaging negative vert most of the offseason, as low as -10" VB at times.”
If the kick changeup we saw yesterday was a taste of what’s to come, then I am extremely excited. The changeup will be key for Holmes to tackle LHH, a subset of batters which he has struggled against throughout his career.
Holmes has excelled at inducing weak contact throughout his career and his new cutter should continue that trend. He only tossed 3, but its characteristics paint it as a platoon neutral offering which only supports his case as a starting pitcher. The offering averaged 91.9 MPH with 6” of iVB and minimal horizontal action.
I am all in on Holmes being a starter and Mets fans could not have asked for more optimistic debut from Holmes.
Jack Letier (New Sinker)
Leiter flashed a new sinker in his Spring appearance yesterday that graded out very well and should give him another weapon to tackle RHH. The characteristics of the pitch were very intriguing as it averaged 97.6 MPH and exhibited ~15” of both rise and run. His 4-Seam and Slider were great as usual and it will be interesting to see how he manages his pitch usage throughout the Spring.
Even with the added sinker, Leiter’s arsenal sits on the shallower side as he doesn’t have a true put away pitch against LHH. He will most likely utilize his sinker and slider to RHH, while his 4-Seam will be the primary offering to LHH. His changeup flashes some very positive traits, but he has struggled to command the offering throughout his career.
I labelled Leiter as a breakout candidate for the 2025 season with the prediction that he would be used in a relief role. I’d expect the Rangers to squeeze every last bit of potential out of Leiter and keep him in as a SP until it is no longer feasible. The addition of his sinker supports this thought, and I am very interested to see how he weaves in the new offering as the Spring progresses.
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Great stuff Thomas. Could you provide a quick tutorial explaining the different metrics in your charts? You provide solid data in your charts, I just don't understand all of it. Thanks!