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New York Yankees Trade Acquisition Devin Williams Ranks Near Top of Recent Baseball History

The New York Yankees swung a big trade on Friday, acquiring All-Star closer Devin Williams from the Milwaukee Brewers.

Brady Farkas

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Devin Williams (38) pitches during the ninth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on Sept 10.
Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Devin Williams (38) pitches during the ninth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on Sept 10. / Stan Szeto-Imagn Images
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On Friday, the New York Yankees swung a massive trade, acquiring All-Star closer Devin Williams for pitcher Nestor Cortes and prospect Caleb Durbin.

In the wake of missing out on Juan Soto, the Yankees have now added Max Fried to aid the starting rotation and Williams to aid the bullpen. He'll pair with Luke Weaver at the back end as the team has also seen Clay Holmes exit in free agency.

In getting Williams, the Yankees are getting one of the best relievers in the sport over the last several years.

Per Jeff Passan of ESPN:

Since his debut in 2019, here are Devin Williams' ranks among relievers with at least 200 innings pitched:

ERA: 2nd (1.83)
K/9: 4th (14.3)
HR/9: 6th (0.6)
H/9: 1st (4.9)

He is one of the truly elite relievers in baseball. And now he's at the back end of the Yankees' bullpen.

Williams appeared in just 22 games last year because of injury but still went 1-0 with a 1.25 ERA. He struck out 38 batters in 21.2 innings.

Lifetime, he's a two-time All-Star and a Rookie of the Year winner.

The Yankees advanced to the World Series this past season, losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games. In the wake of losing Soto, the team has more money to spend and will likely go out and make further improvements to try to capture the World Series title in 2025.

Williams is headed for his last spin through the arbitration system and will be a free agent for the first time in 2026.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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