NEW YORK — It shouldn’t be surprising, but it is.
The New York Yankees are moving Devin Williams out of the closer role, manager Aaron Boone said on Sunday morning. Williams, one of the club’s biggest offseason acquisitions, has an 11.25 ERA in 10 relief appearances since he was traded to the Yankees. To say he has struggled is an understatement. From his confidence to his signature pitch, nothing about Williams’ performance has been as advertised.
“For right now,” Boone said, “I’m going to take him out of that role.”
The Yankees were left with no choice but to demote Williams after the right-hander blew the save against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night. He entered Sunday having surrendered 10 earned runs. Last year for the Milwaukee Brewers, he only permitted three earned runs in 22 appearances. But it was still surprising how quickly the Yankees reacted, because it took them much longer to do the right thing last year when they faced a similar situation.
Former Yankees closer Clay Holmes blew his 13th save of the year before the Yankees finally, begrudgingly, decided to let reliever Luke Weaver take over closing duties last September. The team was widely criticized for waiting until the final month of the regular season to demote Holmes, particularly after Weaver had shown he could get the job done when he was placed in high-leverage situations.
Lesson learned. This time around, the Yankees didn’t want to take any chances. Weaver is, once again, expected to receive the majority of save opportunities while Williams goes back to the drawing board.
“This is a guy who’s in the prime of his career,” Boone said. “He’s just going through it and it happens. I tell our players all the time, you make a career at this long enough, and you’re going to face some challenging moments. You’re going to face some adversity along the way.
“The good news for Devin is, he has everything to get through this and come out better from the other side. That’s my expectation. Right now, it’s best for everyone to pull him out of that role and try to start building some good rhythm, confidence and momentum. I fully expect him to be a central figure for us moving forward.”
Williams was at a loss for meaningful answers on Friday after New York’s 4-2 loss to Toronto. He threw just 12 pitches and failed to record an out in the ninth inning as the Blue Jays erased the Yankees’ lead. “We Want Weaver” chants cascaded down, and Williams was ferociously booed off the mound in the Bronx. When asked about the chants, Williams said, “Everyone has their own opinions.”
Boone said it’s possible Williams could be dealing with “some shock” to the response from Yankees fans.
Back in December, the Yankees were praised for pulling off the trade for Williams, sending starting pitcher Nestor Cortes and infield prospect Caleb Durbin to the Brewers in exchange for one of the most elite closers in baseball. The 30-year-old closer is a two-time recipient of the Trevor Hoffman Reliever of the Year award, a two-time All-Star, and the 2020 National League Rookie of the Year. He entered this season with a 1.70 career ERA across 222 innings pitched. Up until he gave up a monumental three-run home run to New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso in the eighth inning of the 2024 wild card series, Williams had been used to nothing but domination on the mound.
“Truthfully, I don’t know,” Williams said on Friday when asked why he hasn’t been able to find his command. “It’s something I’ve been battling for most of the season. It’s getting pretty frustrating.”
Williams’ changeup, a signature pitch called the “airbender,” is normally one of the filthiest and most elite pitches in baseball. Opposing hitters have said the horizontal break on Williams’ changeup is unhittable. But that same changeup has failed him this season. Alejandro Kirk delivered the latest blow on the pitch, punishing Williams’ poorly-located changeup with a two-run double on Friday night. The airbender had no bend, and it fell across the middle of the plate; a perfect spot for Kirk to hit it to the warning track at Yankee Stadium.
In 2024, opposing hitters batted .162 (6-for-37) against Williams’ changeup. This year, they’re batting .273.
“Nothing’s working right now,” Williams said.
The silver lining for the Yankees is that the season is still very young, so there’s plenty of time and runway for Williams to find his form again. We saw a similar situation unfold across town in 2019, when closer Edwin Diaz was traded to the Mets and had a frustrating debut season that included seven blown saves and a 5.59 ERA in 66 relief appearances. Diaz came to New York from Seattle, a mid-market team with a quieter media presence, and he struggled under the constant noise, brighter lights, and added expectations in the Big Apple. Diaz ultimately regained his elite production, putting up a career year in 2022 with a 1.31 ERA and 32 saves across 61 appearances.
These things can take time, and the Yankees have bought it with a viable closer candidate in Weaver, who has given up zero runs across 13 innings and 11 relief appearances this season. For now, Williams has no choice but to watch and learn.
Deesha Thosar is a MLB reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets for four years as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.
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