"A solid team player" - Fans laud Marcus Stroman as star pitcher backs Yankees closer despite disaster outing in latest loss

The Yankees were off to a great start on Monday night against the Seattle Mariners, but pitcher Clay Holmes's poor outing cost them the game. However, the starting pitcher of the Yankees, Marcus Stroman, showered relief pitcher Clay Holmes with praise, despite a tough loss, which attracted reactions from fans.

The Yankees lost to the Seattle Mariners 5-4. In the ninth inning, Holmes blundered and gave up four runs.

Despite criticizing Holmes for his poor performance on Monday, Stroman supported him by saying that he's one of the finest closers in baseball and that his performance before the game was up to the mark.

Fans shared their positive reactions and love for Stroman:

“You’re a guy’s guy. A solid team player. This squad is lucky to have ya.” commented a fan

"Love you Stro let’s win a ballgame tomorrow!" another fan said

"Great game brother. Just a hiccup from Clay but it’s all good." wrote another user acknowledging that despite Clay's struggles it was a good game.

However, not all fans were on the same page as Stroman and criticized Holmes for his gameplay.

"Not the time to put this out, he was awful tonight, and he ruined your outing and your win. This can derail a season," a comment reads.

"Good attitude but the best closer doesn't blow a 3 run lead with 2 outs to get. That's just embarrasing" another comment reads.

Stroman showed a dominant performance on Monday against the Mariners. He allowed one walk and three hits and also struck out six players. For his brilliant gameplay, his ERA dropped from 3.33 to 3.05. This season, he has struck out 48 players in 56 innings and has a WHIP of 1.30.

The Star pitcher has shown that it’s not always about winning, showing the positive environment in the Yankees clubhouse.

---

Clay Holmes takes responsibility for poor outing

The New York Yankees impressive night on Monday in the Yankees Stadium came to a screeching halt. After a strong start by Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman, Holmes entered the game in the ninth inning with a comfortable 4-1 lead. However, things took a turn.

Holmes struggled with his pitches, which allowed the Mariners to hit the ball consistently and he gave up four runs in the ninth inning.

“That one’s on me,” Holmes said. “I feel like I made some good pitches, and definitely some balls found some holes, but I was ahead on a couple of guys there 0-2, 1-2, and put them on base. They could have been big outs.” said Holmes in a post-game interview (as per MLB.com)

The loss ended the Yankees' seven-game winning streak. Holmes’ performance came as a surprise, as he had started the season with a 0.00 ERA and had not allowed a run in 20 previous games.