Yankees' Spencer Jones has emotional reaction to causing brutal Clay Holmes injury

The New York Yankees didn't need to beat the Mets on Friday because they're staunch rivals. They needed to beat the Mets on Friday because they were riding a 1-5 stretch and facing genuine questions about their competence for the first time since early April. Facing their former closer Clay Holmes, who's evolved into both a starting pitcher and an ace concurrently, added an additional daunting level to the task.

Surprisingly, the Yankees' offense burst through, punctuated by three hits from Jazz Chisholm Jr. wearing Giancarlo Stanton's pants and rookie Spencer Jones recording his first career multi-hit game. Unsurprisingly, ace Cam Schlittler shoved once again, even though certain "unbiased" Mets fans questioned whether or not he was actually talented.

Holmes was knocked out in the fifth, working out of a bases-loaded jam in the fourth and striking out Cody Bellinger/walking Chisholm before exiting. That feat was all the more impressive considering the postgame revelation that he'd fractured a fibula midway through the fourth.

Jones' second single rocketed off Holmes' leg and ricocheted around the infield. At the time, it seemed like par for the course - Schlittler's been hit by a liner in each of his last three starts. Holmes, historically gutty, pitched through it and pitched well, and was likely as taken aback as anyone in the postgame to learn he'd suffered the injury and would be out "for a long time".

When the media reached Jones postgame, he likely thought he'd be discussing his breakthrough game. Unfortunately, it was punctuated by his realization that he'd caused a long-term injury to a man he trains with, a longtime friend, a former Yankee. The video's tough.

Clay Holmes' timeline for injury recovery means his season may be over

The Mets, among the worst teams in the National League, must turn things around (checks notes) immediately if they want to avoid difficult questions about threading the selling/buying needle at the trade deadline. Holmes was, until Friday evening, either the Mets' ace or their most prime trade target.

The deadline is now out of the question. Holmes' potential return will come too late for him to drive a winning streak or be leveraged for prospect capital. Friday's injury was painful in more ways than one, and the reverberations reached Jones in the Yankees locker room, whose enthusiasm for his own breakout was quickly squashed.

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