METS ALREADY PLAYING UP HOLMES LIKE HE'S THE NEXT MARIANO...

 But Yankee fans know differently.

Leave it to the Mets to use the media to hype up Clay Holmes as if he’s about to become the greatest closer of all time. Let’s be real—they kind of have to.

Why? Because Mets fans already know they overpaid for Holmes. Sure, he was an All-Star with the Yankees, but by the end of last season, he had lost his way in the Bronx. Now, the Mets are in full spin mode, selling him as the next big thing to justify signing him to a three-year, $38 million deal.

To be clear, Holmes isn’t a bad guy or a terrible closer. He’s a solid pitcher—when he’s not stumbling. But let’s not pretend he’s on the level of Mariano Rivera or Dennis Eckersley. He’s not even in the Cy Young conversation. If anything, maybe he’s a more likable version of Carl Pavano.

And now, here we are, with Mets PR pushing the narrative that Holmes is a game-changer. The latest example? NJ.com reported that Holmes threw three simulated innings on the first day of pitchers and catchers, something no other Mets starter did. Manager Carlos Mendoza even chimed in:

"The fact that on day one of pitchers and catchers, he’s already at three ups, that’s pretty impressive. You got to give him credit because that shows all the work that he did as soon as we signed him, like I said, with the mindset that he was making that transition. So he knew he needed to get here and (be) ready to go to face hitters."

Come on, man. It’s Day 1 of spring training. Let’s pump the brakes on the Clay Holmes hype train.