When the New York Mets signed Devin Williams in the offseason, they were hoping for two things: the first was that his 2025 season was an anomaly, and the second was to pair him up with Edwin Díaz if they could re-sign him. The problem? Diaz would leave for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the hopes of winning a World Series ring. Can you blame him? It’s the Dodgers. For New York, they were now stuck hoping Williams could revert to his Milwaukee Brewers form that made him a good closer, but it’s been a rocky beginning to his run in Queens.
The Mets are in a Devin Williams Conundrum
With Diaz gone, it left the Mets needing Williams to be what he was before-an effective closer like he was during his Milwaukee Brewers days. If he struggled, it would put their bullpen in a bind. Through his first five appearances of the season, Williams actually looked like his old self. He did not allow a run, struck out seven, and recorded two saves. Things seemed okay for Williams, and it was exactly the start he needed after his 2025 season with the New York Yankees. However, Williams would be left sitting in the bullpen for a while as the Mets were in the middle of a 12-game losing streak.
Williams’ Struggles
Williams did not pitch for eight days as a result. That was until Williams found himself pitching for the first time in a week at Dodger Stadium against the team that signed the Mets’ preferred choice to be their 2026 closer.
He would record one out in the outing and allowed four earned runs as the Dodgers beat the Mets 8-2. Some chalked it up to rust for Williams, but his following outings have proven that not to be the case. He did not hold a Mets 1-0 lead against the Chicago Cubs and blew the save by allowing a pinch-hit game-tying double to former Met Michael Conforto. You can chalk this one up to the Mets offensive woes as well, but Williams has to hold a lead especially in the midst of a long losing skid.
Then, this past Tuesday against the Minnesota Twins, Williams would come in to try and hold a 3-3 tie. But he would not record an out in the ninth inning, walked three batters, and allowed two earned runs as the Mets lost 5-3. His latest outing on Thursday night wasn’t pretty either, although Huascar Brazoban’s gaffe probably didn’t help matters. After Brazoban mistakenly came in for the ninth and got the first out, a visibly frustrated Carlos Mendoza called in Williams to get the final two outs.
He recorded a strikeout, but then he allowed three consecutive two-out hits that cut New York’s lead to 10-8 and allowed the tying runs on base with the go-ahead run at the plate. Williams, however, would strike out Trevor Larnach to preserve a Mets win. While he got the last out, it was another shaky performance.
Williams’ 2026 Beginning: Tale of Two Stories
While Williams pitched very well to start his tenure as a Met, his numbers have ballooned due to these struggles and control issues with his changeup. His ERA is up to 10.29 on the season (36.00 in his last four appearances). He’s allowed four walks, nine hits, and eight earned runs in just two full innings pitched during this stretch.
What do the Mets do at Closer?
As of now, there’s nothing much the Mets can do except hope Williams figures it out. Luke Weaver is certainly an option to close, but that wasn’t the role New York originally had planned for him. A.J. Minter is there as well, when he returns from injury, but he is more of a setup man and has only 15 saves in his career. New York needed another arm in that bullpen after losing Diaz and even after signing Williams. There was interest in a trade for Mason Miller, but that didn’t come to pass. Kenley Jansen was also available in the days after Diaz left, and New York showed interest in him during the 2025 offseason, but he signed with the Detroit Tigers.
For now, not re-signing Diaz isn’t hurting the Mets, given his struggles in Los Angeles and now an injury that will hold him out of the Dodgers’ bullpen until at least the second half of the season. However, it doesn’t negate that they chose Williams even after a struggling season in the Bronx and after they themselves saw the home run that kick-started this part of Williams’ career. The part that Williams has been fighting since Pete Alonso knocked the ball over the right-field fence in the 2024 Wild-Card series. Williams has to turn his career around soon, or the Mets and their bullpen will be in trouble.
Main Photo Credits: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
