Yes, the New York Yankees lost Juan Soto in free agency, but their response to that catastrophe had many expecting them to be among the best teams in the sport even without Soto. Devin Williams was a big part of that.
The Yankees acquired Williams in a deal with the Milwaukee Brewers, sending Nestor Cortes and Caleb Durbin the other way. Cortes is injured, and Durbin has just eight MLB games under his belt, but the trade has still aged horribly as of this writing for the Bronx Bombers.
Williams has now allowed 12 runs (10 earned) in his 10 Yankees appearances and eight innings of work. He just blew his first save of the season on Friday, allowing three runs on two hits and failing to record a single out against the light-hitting Toronto Blue Jays.
Another poor performance led manager Aaron Boone to open the door to a possible role change for Williams.
Aaron Boone won’t say if he’s considering a closer change yet because the game just ended.
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) April 26, 2025
He did say “we’ll see” when asked if Devin Williams would benefit from lower leverage spots.
Boone didn't say outright that there'd be a change in role, but the fact that he said "we'll see" when asked if Williams would benefit from pitching in lower-leverage likely tells Yankees fans all they need to hear.
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It sure sounds like a role change is on the horizon for Devin Williams
At this point, it doesn't feel like Boone has much of a choice but to move Williams to a lower-leverage role until he gets right. Williams is struggling more than he ever has in the major leagues.
The right-hander entered this season with a 1.83 ERA in 241 MLB appearances over parts of six seasons with the Brewers. He had never posted an ERA above 2.50 in a season in which he appeared in 15 or more contests. He had a 1.25 ERA in 22 regular-season appearances for Milwaukee last season. Say what you want about Williams' postseason struggles — they're well documented — but in the regular season, he's been considered one of the best closers in the sport for years now. I mean, there's a reason the Yankees had to part with Cortes and Durbin for just one guaranteed year of Williams.
It'd be one thing if the Yankees didn't have a viable Williams replacement, but Luke Weaver exists. Not only did he close for the Yankees in last year's postseason, but he has not allowed a run in his 11 appearances. He's surrendered just three hits in 13 innings of work. He's been dominant. With guys like Fernando Cruz, Mark Leiter Jr. and Tim Hill in the mix as well, the Yankees can afford to get Williams out of high-leverage entirely.
Chances are, Williams will find his way eventually — he's far too talented to struggle like this. A move to low leverage to kick some of the pressure to the wayside while he attempts to figure it out would be for the best.