Can Dayne St. Clair earn back Inter Miami's starting keeper job?

On Wednesday, Hoyos wouldn't say that Rocco had lost the job.

""The change was not due to Rocco's low-performance levels. We just thought there'd be lots of crosses today, and that St Clair is more effective in the air," he told reporters, according to independent soccer reporter Franco Panizo, who covers Inter Miami and is the founder of Miami Total Futbol.

Inter Miami is among Major League Soccer's worst defenses, allowing 38 goals in 20 matches, or 1.9 goals per 90 minutes played; league leader Nashville has allowed just 15 goals in the same number of games, or 0.75 per 90. Orlando City SC (2.75 goals conceded per 90 minutes played) and Sporting Kansas City (2.45 allowed per 90) are having historically bad defensive seasons.

Between St. Clair and Ríos Novo have combined to save 61.6 percent (61 of 99) shots on target against the Herons, 23rd in the league; nine teams are over 70 percent, led by Nashville at 77.6 percent (52 of 67).

St. Clair has a save percentage of just 60 percent (45 of 75), 29th among MLS keepers; Ríos Novo, in a much smaller sample size, has saved 66.7 percent (16 of 24) of the shots on target he's faced against league opponents. It won't make faithful fans feel better about the situation to learn two former Herons' keepers are 12th and 13th in MLS save percentage: Minnesota's Drake Callender (69.9 percent, 65 of 93) and San Diego's CJ Dos Santos (69.7, 23 of 33).

So, the Herons have two mediocre keepers (and third keeper Luis Barraza, a 29-year-old journeyman with limited experience and no appearances in 2026). Can one of them claim the job? Or will Las Garzas try to bring in another netminder before the MLS secondary transfer period ends Sept. 2?

My money's on St. Clair; even if the two were equal in every other metric, St. Clair's height (6-foot-3 to
Ríos Novo's 5-foot-10) gives him a clear advantage. Rocco, 24, is younger, but St. Clair, 29, has more experience and has shown that he is capable of much more than he's shown wearing Pink & Black.

If Inter Miami wants to salvage St. Clair, they need to build his confidence and trust. Name him the starter and support him as he regains the swagger he showed at Minnesota and with the Canada national team. Emphasize to Rocco that he is valued and needed to push St. Clair, but the job is Dayne's, at least for the rest of this season.

How Hoyos handles this situation will go a long way to deciding whether the Herons win trophies this year or write off this year to growing pains.

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