Devin Williams and Luke Weaver will led a strong New York Yankees bullpen in 2025 (Photo Source: IMAGN)
The New York Yankees have sent the baseball community into a frenzy by acquiring All-Star closer Devin Williams from the Milwaukee Brewers. After losing former closer Clay Holmes in free agency, the Bronx Bombers wasted little time in replacing him with a more reliable option out of the bullpen.
As part of the deal, the New York Yankees sent infield prospect Caleb Durbin and veteran southpaw Nestor Cortes to the Milwaukee Brewers.
Even though Cortes was a key piece of the rotation, after New York signed former Atlanta Braves star Max Fried to an eight-year, $218 million deal, he became a surplus. While the loss of Durbin and Cortes is tough, landing a proven, lockdown closer is massive.
It will be interesting to see how manager Aaron Boone decides how he will use his bullpen heading into 2025. Although there will likely be some shifting throughout the season, there are some clear defined roles already following the acquistion of Devin Williams.
Given his track record and dominance, it is safe to assume that Devin Williams will be New York’s closer in 2025, however, the rest of the bullpen will be interesting. Last season, Luke Weaver turned back the clock, replacing Clay Holmes as the team’s closer. That being said, the acquisition of Williams will likely make Weaver the eighth inning set-up man, who could get the occasional save opportunity.
Beyond those two, the rest of the bullpens heirachy is less clear. The New York Yankees brought back the talent but oft-injured Jonathan Loáisiga, who could be turned to in high-leverage situations. The rest of the bullpen is currently rounded out by Ian Hamilton, Mark Leiter Jr., Jake Cousins, Scott Effross and Clayton Beeter.
There is a chance that the New York Yankees front office may not be finished adding to the pitching staff, particularily in the bullpen. There are still a number of intriguing veterans that they could pursue in free agency, including bringing Tim Hill back into the fold.
Hill was invaluble for the Yankees after being deisgnated for assignment by the Chicago White Sox in June 2024. The veteran southpaw was effective for the club out of the bullpen, especially in the postseason. Across 8.1 innings of work in the postseason, Hill allowed only one earned run, so it would be unsurprising to see him back in the Yanks’ pinstripes in 2025 as well.
