Devin Williams could have been a closer, and he still could be with the Mets, but the opportunity he saw in Queens wasn’t necessarily dependent on whether he pitches in the eighth or ninth innings. For Williams, it’s about winning.
“They’re a team that wants to win,” the Mets’ new right-handed reliever said Friday on a Zoom call. “Steve [Cohen] is doing all he can to put a winning product on the field, and I’d love to be a part of that.”
The owner’s desire to win a World Series is no secret. Since Steve and Alex Cohen took over ownership of the Mets in 2021, the club has steadily gained a reputation as a destination for free agents, including free agents who played in the Bronx. Williams, who signed a three-year $51 million contract with the Mets earlier this week, is third pitcher and fourth player in the last three years to go from the Yankees to the Mets as a free agent, following a trend set by Luis Severino, Clay Holmes and Juan Soto. Manager Carlos Mendoza also came from the Yankees.
From the outside, his decision to sign with another New York City team was surprising. An elite setup man and closer in Milwaukee, Williams posted a career-worst 4.79 ERA with the Yankees last year. Traded from the Brewers to the Yankees last December, he was removed from the closer twice during his one-season tenure with the Yankees.
It was a perplexing season, especially since the underlying analytics didn’t point to any sort of decline. The numbers under the hood were largely on-par with his career numbers, and his fastball and changeup were still lethal pitches.
“I feel like there was kind of a lot of factors really,” Williams said of his struggles in 2025. “Some mechanical pitch-selection type stuff, looking back on it just kind of reflecting on that.”
Williams, who will be 31 next season, started calling his own pitches on PitchCom after the Yankees moved him into a lower-leverage role in late April. Calling his own pitches worked; Williams went 2-0 with a 2.42 ERA and a 2.11 FIP over his next 24 appearances, holding 20 leads and saving seven games.
Luke Weaver was injured, allowing an opening for Williams to return to the ninth-inning role.
Then the calendar turned to July and again, Williams suddenly lost the ability to hold leads. He gave up five earned runs in his first three games of the month (2 2/3 innings), blowing a save in Texas against the Rangers and taking a loss the following day, before taking a second loss in the next series against the Houston Astros.
Williams was booed mercilessly by the Yankee Stadium faithful. It became a regular occurrence. The club acquired David Bednar at the trade deadline, moving him into the closer role.
Still, Williams grew to enjoy New York City. A St. Louis native who had played his entire career in Milwaukee until last year, he was able to block out the hostility and adapt to baseball life in the city. He thinks the experience will help him with the Mets over the next three years, especially given his familiarity with president of baseball operations David Stearns.
“It’s familiar now,” he said. “I know what I’m going to need to do in order to get to the field, things like that, you know? Like getting home — just life stuff. So I’ve got all that figured out already and I’m comfortable there now.”
Williams is working on adding a cutter and slider to his two-pitch mix. Known for his “airbender” changeup, Williams has thrown a cutter in the past, but it’s been a rare occurrence. This winter, he’s working with the pitch with the goal of expanding its usage. A gyro slider could give him another swing-and-miss pitch.
Now, the question is whether or not he’ll close or set up for Edwin Diaz. Williams talked to several teams that had interest in signing him as a closer, but he still chose the Mets knowing his role will be dependent on what happens with Diaz. The Mets are still pursuing the free-agent closer in free agency, and Williams sees it as a “good situation” if Diaz returns to Queens.
“More arms is always a good thing,” he said.
More arms will be coming soon with the winter meetings starting Monday in Orlando. If Diaz ends up elsewhere, the Mets have a closer ready to step in to help win.
