ST. LOUIS — Clay Holmes’ chances of finishing six innings appeared slim early on, but then he got rolling Friday. The right-hander was dented in the early innings — surrendering three earned runs — before retiring 10 of 11 batters to complete his night in the Mets’ 9-3 victory over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

The Mets had baserunners galore — nine hits, three walks — against Gray, who they forced to throw 96 pitches in 4 1/3 innings. He gave up six runs (four earned). The game-breaker was a four-run fifth, when Gray recorded one out on 21 pitches.

New York Mets starting pitcher Clay Holmes has reinvented himself this season. The 32-year-old primarily came out of the bullpen before arriving to Queens, as he only started four games from 2018-24,