The New York Yankees are regrouping after missing out on Juan Soto, and they’re now exploring alternative ways to bolster their roster this offseason. According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, one player who caught their attention was Devin Williams, a talented reliever from the Milwaukee Brewers. There is a sense that the Brewers might wait until later in the offseason to deal with Williams, if at all.
Yankees Interested in Devin Williams
Despite his most recent outing being the one that cost the Brewers their season against the New York Mets in the NL Wild Card, Williams has been one of baseball’s most dominant relievers since winning NL Rookie of the Year in 2020. It’s no wonder why the right-hander is “attracting an overwhelming amount of interest on the trade market”. The Yankees are one of those teams, but they will have to give up a haul if they wish to bring in the two-time Trevor Hoffman Award winner (NL’s best reliever award).
Milwaukee has spent their offseason thus far trying to clear as much cap space as possible. Williams is projected to make approximately $7.7 million in arbitration, so it’s in their best interest to deal their closer. They have a lot of holes to fill in other areas of the roster, especially after the departure of shortstop Willy Adames.
Trade Options
Another area that Milwaukee needs to bolster is their starting rotation. This works perfectly in conjunction with the Yankees’ abundance of starting pitchers. As of right now, they boast six full-time starters Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, Luis Gil, Clarke Schmidt, Nestor Cortes Jr, and Marcus Stroman. What is more, they’ve been heavily rumored to be looking to add yet another starter to their roster, with links to Garrett Crochet, Corbin Burnes, and Max Fried among others. This means that there may be multiple odd-men-out in the rotation next year, opening up the possibility of dealing one to Milwaukee in return for a perennially great reliever in Williams.
Cortes Jr and Stroman stand out as the primary options for this sort of trade; the Yankees were already open to dealing with one or both of them last July. But the Brewers will likely require more than a number four/five starter, not to mention how a dozen other teams are also vying for Williams. Brian Cashman will have to throw in a few sweeteners to grab Milwaukee’s attention.
Fit in New York’s Bullpen
The closer role is not one that the Yankees have to fill. Luke Weaver, who emerged as a top-tier reliever last season, took over the role from the newly departed Clay Holmes in August and never looked back, closing out games in dominant fashion through the fall. Williams hasn’t always been a closer for the Brewers, only registering 68 saves since debuting in 2019. If he becomes a Yankee, he’ll likely have a role similar to that of Clay Holmes (at the end of the season) or Tommy Kahnle (who is now a free agent) as a set-up man.
If the Yankees are somehow able to add one of baseball’s best relievers in Williams to their already formidable bullpen, it would make their pitching staff one of, if not the best, in baseball next season.
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