Right-hander Clay Holmes and the New York Mets have agreed to terms on a three-year, $38 million contract with an option to opt out after the second year, sources confirmed to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

The Mets plan to make Holmes, who spent his big league career as a reliever, the starter. He hasn’t started a game since his rookie season in 2018.

Holmes was a mediocre reliever for the Pittsburgh Pirates for more than three seasons, only to begin his big league career after seven years in the minor leagues. He took off when the New York Yankees signed him for two minor league players at the 2021 trade deadline. He arrived in the Bronx with a 4.93 ERA but found immediate success in the Yankees’ bullpen, posting a 1.61 ERA in 25 games. He replaced Aroldis Chapman as the club’s bottom hitter in 2022, posting a 2.54 ERA with 20 saves and making his first All-Star team.

The 31-year-old Holmes was an All-Star again last season after a dominant start to the year. But he struggled as a closer over the summer, failing to make a league-leading 13 saves – four more than any other reliever – and was demoted from that role in early September. He finished the regular season with a 3.14 ERA and 30 saves in 67 appearances. He was charged with three runs in 13 postseason games, mostly in the setup or fireman role.

Despite the mishaps, his elite skillset, which includes a high-90s sinker and a wipeout slider, as well as his elite ability to induce ground balls – he produced the second-highest ground ball rate in the majors in 2024 – made Holmes an attractive option for several prospects in of free agency.

The Yankees, meanwhile, decided it wasn’t worth the price to keep Holmes. They have excelled at discovering and developing cheap gems for their bullpen in recent years, from Holmes in 2021 to Luke Weaver last season, and are aiming to add big in others this offseason departments, with Juan Soto still high on their priority list.

The New York Post first reported Holmes’ agreement with the Mets.