With Aroldis Chapman out of the picture and in Kansas City with the Royals, there is uncertainty around the New York Yankees' closer role. They have plenty of qualified pitchers for the gig and Aaron Boone revealed that Clay Holmes is expected to be their primary 9th inning option. With that being said, Boone added that other relievers may also see save opportunities, per SNY's Andy Martino.

“I would expect [Clay Holmes] to close a lot of games for us,” Boone said. “Probably most games, and hopefully a lot of games. But I do see a number of guys getting saves.”

Boone shared an example of why a pitcher other than Clay Holmes might be called upon to work in the 9th inning.

“There are going to be days where if it’s [George] Springer, [Bo] Bichette and Vladdy [Vladimir Guerrero Jr.] coming up in the eighth inning in a big spot, that might be Clay.”

Clay Holmes is one of the better relievers in baseball. Boone doesn't want to restrict him to the 9th inning if the best hitters for an opposing team, as exemplified by the Toronto Blue Jays in Boone's quote, are due up in the 7th or 8th inning. Nevertheless, Holmes is the expected closer for this Yankees' ball club.

New York's offense will be led by Aaron Judge once again and they will provide run support. The Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, and Nestor Cortes-led starting rotation will also put the Yankees in positions to win games. And if the bullpen can take care of business late in contests, this will be an overall dangerous team in 2023.