The New York Yankees have given their new superstar closer Devin Williams a seven-figure deal for the 2025 MLB season.
Yankees lock down Devin Williams for 2025 at $8.6 million
The RotoWire Staff (via CBS Sports) relayed a report from ESPN’s Jorge Castillo which revealed that the Yankees officially agreed on a one-year, $8.6 million contract with Williams on Thursday. Both parties will avoid an arbitration hearing this winter as a result of the deal.
The Yankees acquired Williams in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers on Dec. 13. He was under one more year of club control in Milwaukee at the time that New York brought him on board.
Williams is getting over $1 million more than the last deal
The Missouri native’s upcoming $8.6 million salary is more than the $7.25 million he played for in 2024. He’ll have the opportunity to play beyond that former dollar amount for a Yankees team that is on the precipice of winning their first World Series since 2009.
Williams was limited to 22 games last season. That did not hinder him from boasting an immaculate 1.25 ERA with a higher strikeouts average per game of 1.72 Ks than his prior two campaigns. Both the 2022 and 2023 seasons saw the 30-year-old take the big leagues by storm with a combined 183 strikeouts throughout 126 games played, alongside a 1.73 cumulative ERA and a sweltering 0.964 cumulative WHIP.
Yankees: Williams can cash out in 2026 with a huge season
It’s that type of play that’s led to Williams taking home two National League Reliever of the Year awards, in that selfsame 2023 outing as well as in 2020. He is widely regarded as one of, if not the best closer in the MLB, and, should he play up to his standards for the Yankees next season in the Bronx, NY, he should be in line for a massive long-term deal in unrestricted free agency next fall.