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The New York Yankees thought they had finally found their closer when they acquired two-time National League Reliever of the Year Devin Williams. On Sunday, they demoted him.
Coming into this season, Williams owned a 1.83 ERA in his first six MLB seasons, all with the Milwaukee Brewers. That figure was the second-best in the majors, behind only Emmanuel Clase (who, too, is struggling), and his 14.3 K/9 in that span was the fourth-best.
But with the Yankees, he had allowed 10 earned runs in his first eight innings of work, and after blowing a four-run lead and another save last week, New York announced they were taking him out of the closer’s role.
New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone takes the ball from relief pitcher Devin Williams during the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. (Brad Penner-Imagn Images)
It’s unfamiliar territory for Williams in more ways than one, as the talk in the tri-state area is that Williams is another victim of the bigger market.
However, his former Brewers teammate in Christian Yelich disagrees.
“Devin will be fine. He’s one of the best closers in baseball. He’s done it for a long time,” Yelich told Fox News Digital in a recent interview.
“Anything in a small sample size doesn’t really tell the true story. You have a tough outing or two, everything kind of gets skewed. It’s tough being a reliever when you only have a few innings early in the season and a couple of them don’t go your way,” he added. “But he’ll be fine. He knows what he’s getting into in New York. He’s pitched in a lot of big games. So I’m not worried about him. He’ll be just fine.”
New York Yankees relief pitcher Devin Williams walks off the field after being taken out of the game against the Toronto Blue Jays in the ninth inning at Yankee Stadium. (Brad Penner-Imagn Images)
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Williams was notably not thrilled when he had to shave his beard, which became another stepping stone to owner Hal Steinbrenner ditching the longstanding policy implemented by his father in the 1970s.
Yelich agrees that the policy-drop was a smart decision, but “we all got a good laugh about it with the Brewers” when Williams had to shave.
Perhaps that has added to the pressure, but for Williams, while he was not the sole catalyst for the policy change, it’s safe to assume he helped push it into the end zone.
Williams has also reportedly complained about the media presence in the Yankees’ clubhouse, which surely is a lot different from his days in Milwaukee.
He appeared to have it figured out this month, when he had consecutive three-up, three-down outings. But since then, it’s been tough to watch.
New York Yankees relief pitcher Devin Williams pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at PNC Park. (Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images)
For now, Williams is not a high-leverage option, which is poor timing for him because he’s in his final season before free agency.
Luke Weaver, who took on the closer’s role last year after Clay Holmes lost the job, has closed out two games in the last week and has a 0.00 ERA in his 13 appearances this season.
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