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New York Yankees closer Devin Williams’ rough start to the season continued on Friday. The veteran reliever had another disappointing outing during which he blew the save against the Toronto Blue Jays, allowing three runs in the ninth inning at Yankee Stadium.
Following the brutal performance, Williams appeared frustrated with himself when speaking to reporters. “Nothing’s working right now… I wish there was an easy answer, but I’m not really sure. It’s not a good feeling, not to be able to get the job done for the team. They put us in a great position to win there, and I couldn’t get it done today,” Williams said, per Bryan Hoch and Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
The Yankees entered the ninth inning with a 2-1 lead over the Blue Jays and handed the ball to Williams. But things quickly got out of control for the former Milwaukee Brewers’ star. Williams allowed three runs on two hits and failed to record an out as Toronto took a 4-2 lead that would end up being the final.
Yankees closer Devin Williams appears lost after blown save
While Friday marked Williams’ first blown save of the season, he’s looked out of sorts with the Yankees. After a shaky debut in the Bronx, Williams also blew a four-run lead in an embarrassing meltdown against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Despite the troubling start to his Yankees career, manager Aaron Boone had been supportive of Williams during his early season struggles. However, after Friday night’s blown save, Boone offered a murky response about Williams’ grasp on the closer role.
When asked if he would continue counting on Williams to protect the team’s ninth inning leads, Boone was noncommittal. “We’ll see,” he said via the New York Post. “We’ll talk through that stuff. This is raw right now.”
The Yankees acquired Williams in a trade with the Brewers during the offseason. The team was looking to replace former closer Clay Holmes, who signed with the New York Mets in free agency. Williams was viewed as a significant upgrade over Holmes and the Yankees agreed to an $8.6 million deal for the 2025 season, avoiding arbitration.
However, Williams has been a disaster for the team over the first month of the campaign. He’s currently sporting a mind-blowing 11.25 ERA and equally ugly 2.375 WHIP in eight innings with New York. Even worse than the numbers, it sounds as if Williams has lost confidence in his stuff.
Since arriving in New York Williams has yet to resemble the pitcher who won the Trevor Hoffman National League Reliever of the Year award twice in six seasons with the Brewers.
