Yankees handle Mets, then talk about their ‘psychopath’ former teammate

“Not surprised,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.

Holmes’ toughness and grit stood out when he was a Yankee, too.

“Yeah, he’s a dog,” Boone added. “I mean, he’s a gamer. He’s physically tough, but he’s tough between the ears, too.”

Holmes momentarily froze after being struck by the liner, but when the ball deflected into foul territory between first base and home plate, he made a beeline toward first to cover the bag in case there was a play.

“I hit the ball, and then I saw it come back toward me,” Jones said. “It sounded loud. I was just running to first base.”

Holmes squatted down for a minute while Mets trainers checked on him, but he convinced them that he could continue pitching.

“I could tell he was hurt,” Boone said, “and he’s not a guy that’s showing it a lot or trying not to show it. But you could tell it got him good. But then even watching him move off the mound when he was walking off, I knew it didn’t look that great.”

Ironically, a similar storyline involved Yankees starter Cam Schlittler, who struck out nine while allowing one run on two hits over 6 2/3 innings to improve to 6-1 with a 1.35 ERA.

The second-year right-hander was struck on comebackers in his two previous starts and then had two more scares Friday night.

“I was joking with him out there,” Boone said. “We need to get him an L-screen.”

In the Mets third, Luis Torrens hit a liner off the bottom of Schlittler’s cleat that deflected to shortstop Anthony Volpe, who threw to first base for an out.

In the home seventh, Mark Vientos’ comebacker clipped Schlittler in the ankle, but he was unfazed.

“The left leg’s taking a beating a little bit,” Schlittler said. “Luckily today they weren’t too bad. Not much I can do about it. That’s just kind of where the ball goes when they put it in play. I’d hope it stops, but it doesn’t look too likely.”

Holmes’ situation is a lot more serious.

Holmes, 33, was a two-time All-Star closer for the Yankees before he became a free agent after the ’24 season. He signed a three-year, $38-million contract with the Mets to be a starter, then had a standout 2025 season before getting off to a great start this season.

Last year, he was 12-8 with a 3.53 ERA, pitching 165 2/3 innings over 33 outings. This season, he’s been the ace of a last-place ballclub, going 4-5 with a 2.39 ERA that ranks 10th-best among qualifying National League starters.

But Holmes now is facing a long road back from a fractured leg that perhaps ended his season.

“That sucks,” Boone said. “He’s obviously having a great start to the season for them and has really made a successful transition to being a starter. I hate to hear that. I don’t know what that means from a timeline standpoint, but hopefully he’s able to get back at some point, because he’s obviously doing a great job for them.”

Holmes, an Alabama native who now lives in Nashville, prepped for the season this past winter working out with Jones, a San Diego native who has lived in Nashville since he attended college at Vanderbilt.

“I saw him here and there in the past, but we started working out in the same gym with the same trainer this offseason more than before,” Jones said. “He would go in a little earlier than me, so I’d catch him on the tail end.”

They sure will have something to talk about next winter.

“He’s a tough guy,’ Jones said. “It says a lot about who he is to go back out there again that next inning with a broken leg. It’s incredible.”

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