Mets to Use Zach Thornton on Wednesday After Clay Holmes Injury
The Mets are set to promote zach thornton this week and use him on Wednesday. The 24-year-old lefty is moving into a major league role because Clay Holmes fractured his right fibula, and Wednesday would have been Holmes’s turn in the rotation.
Carlos Mendoza’s Wednesday plan
Carlos Mendoza told reporters that Thornton will play some kind of role for the Mets on Wednesday. That gives the club a direct answer for the next rotation turn, with Thornton at least getting a spot start while the team sorts out the rest of Holmes’s innings.
Thornton could start or work as a bulk pitcher behind an opener. Either way, the Mets are using him immediately after the move rather than letting him sit on the roster without a defined job.
Thornton’s minor league line
The call-up follows a strong run in the minors. Thornton made 14 starts in 2025 before an oblique injury ended his season, and he threw 72 2/3 innings between High-A and Double-A with a 1.98 earned runs per nine, a 28.5% strikeout rate, a 4% walk rate and a 43.2% grounder rate.
This year, he has worked 37 innings across five Double-A starts and two Triple-A starts. He has a 3.16 ERA, a 26.5% strikeout rate, a 7.9% walk rate and a 44.4% ground ball rate. His fastball averages 91 miles per hour, and his mix includes a four-seamer, sinker, slider, cutter, curveball and changeup.
Mets roster pressure
Thornton is not yet on the 40-man roster, so the Mets have to create a spot for him before the move is complete. That adds a roster decision to a pitching decision, and it also leaves open whether he goes back to the minors after the start or stays in the majors.
The long-range picture around the spot Holmes leaves behind is still fluid. The Mets could turn to Sean Manaea or Tobias Myers for the next turn, and Jonah Tong, Jack Wenninger or Jonathan Pintaro are also options as they map out the rotation beyond Wednesday. Baseball America ranked Thornton No. 13 in the Mets system coming into 2026 and later moved him up to No. 10, while FanGraphs listed him 12th.
The Mets drafted Thornton in the fifth round in 2023, and the promotion now puts him in position to cover a game the club had already assigned to Holmes. For a pitcher who was still in the farm system this week, the assignment comes with a clear task: take the ball Wednesday and give the Mets innings they need right now.
