Let’s hope our defense is as good as the 2023 Brewers.
He’s been a top 10, maybe even top 5 closer in baseball since he debuted, nitpicking the down year is crazy when both the underlying metrics and overall stats in his career are elite and he’s still only 31
Remember Edwin’s awful 2019? And he’s still a top 3 closer in the game, stop letting one bad year cloud your view of good players
[deleted]
Like Semien… this is great… if there’s other moves that follow 🎺
I have a feeling he is a good presence for the new starters that kindof are still kids.
I’ve never been a fan of closers that heavily rely on their changeup. I think the best hitters in the game can lock in and beat those pitchers when the game is on the line.
But setting up for Díaz and getting the outs before the heart of the lineup? Perfect.
Build a bullpen with several very different types of pitchers (great reason to keep Rogers) to have all sorts of matchups.
His ERA was 4.79 last year. What is this xERA nonsense?
Guy sucks.
One thing that’s worth noting is that the Yankees for whatever reason gave Williams fewer opportunities to work through jams and that led to him leaving a lot of inherited runners behind. He bequeathed 36 runners to other pitchers in 2025 (prior career high 10), with 11 of them scoring. Those 11 runs that scored after he left those games represented 1/3 of his 33 earned runs for the season. He obviously probably wouldn’t have stranded all 36 of those runners himself, but it does complicate how you look at the ERA of a guy who historically was trusted to end most of his own innings as a Brewer and whose underlying peripherals looked very similar this past year as they did previously. Sometimes you have to give a guy the hook when he doesn’t have his stuff, of course, but generally if there’s a jam you don’t want to yank the guy who has a career K% approaching 40%. I don’t know why Boone had Williams on such a short leash, but it didn’t seem to do either party any favors.
To be completely fair to this signing Ryan Helsley just singed a 2 year 28 million dollar contract so if this deal is 3/45 that really is not that bad.
That’s a lot better than I’d expect given his bad start in NY.
He can be the best closer in baseball for the next 3 years and I’ll still be bitter if we let Diáz walk for him.
Helsley and Williams are pretty similar. Talented relievers that struggled with a new team.
Williams had a 1.66 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 141 IP from 2022-24
Helsley had a 1.83 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in 167.2 IP from 2022-24
Easier to sign the one that didn’t play for you last year (and the one that your President of Baseball Ops is familiar with from his previous team).
People will look at this and see a lot of red=good, but it leaves out the fact that in previous years Williams wasn’t allowing a lot of hard contact. He’d keep it around 85mph exit velocity or under, but last year he allowed 89.5mph. Giving up hard contact is a big issue for a reliever and especially for a high leverage one like Williams.
This is more useful for a reliever than stats like ERA, especially when you consider how crappy the Yankee defense was, how many of his inherited runners the Yankees let in, and how small that ballpark is.
When you look at his FIP and xFIP, last season he was roughly in line with 2023, when he had a 1.53 ERA.
Looking at his actual pitching stats, fastball and change up velocity and stuff have been consistent for 4 years.
All of this points to this being a really good signing.
Any Mets fans who are doubting the advanced stats in regards to Williams, please remember 2019 Diaz – everyone thought he was washed up, but the advanced stats showed that he was unsustainably unlucky and still pitching at an elite level, and he’s been a top closer again ever since.
Just what the Mets need… more guys who don’t throw strikes.
19 comments
2023: 2.66 FIP, 1.53 ERA
2025: 2.68 FIP, 4.79 ERA
Let’s hope our defense is as good as the 2023 Brewers.
He’s been a top 10, maybe even top 5 closer in baseball since he debuted, nitpicking the down year is crazy when both the underlying metrics and overall stats in his career are elite and he’s still only 31
Remember Edwin’s awful 2019? And he’s still a top 3 closer in the game, stop letting one bad year cloud your view of good players
[deleted]
Like Semien… this is great… if there’s other moves that follow 🎺
I have a feeling he is a good presence for the new starters that kindof are still kids.
I’ve never been a fan of closers that heavily rely on their changeup. I think the best hitters in the game can lock in and beat those pitchers when the game is on the line.
But setting up for Díaz and getting the outs before the heart of the lineup? Perfect.
Build a bullpen with several very different types of pitchers (great reason to keep Rogers) to have all sorts of matchups.
His ERA was 4.79 last year. What is this xERA nonsense?
Guy sucks.
NOW DO DIAZ.
SIGN DIAZ
Horrible walk rate he’ll fit right in
I mean—I’ll never forget him for this moment.
https://youtu.be/HN3fL9JX3nQ?si=UryQ_n4TvdFf-iJU
One thing that’s worth noting is that the Yankees for whatever reason gave Williams fewer opportunities to work through jams and that led to him leaving a lot of inherited runners behind. He bequeathed 36 runners to other pitchers in 2025 (prior career high 10), with 11 of them scoring. Those 11 runs that scored after he left those games represented 1/3 of his 33 earned runs for the season. He obviously probably wouldn’t have stranded all 36 of those runners himself, but it does complicate how you look at the ERA of a guy who historically was trusted to end most of his own innings as a Brewer and whose underlying peripherals looked very similar this past year as they did previously. Sometimes you have to give a guy the hook when he doesn’t have his stuff, of course, but generally if there’s a jam you don’t want to yank the guy who has a career K% approaching 40%. I don’t know why Boone had Williams on such a short leash, but it didn’t seem to do either party any favors.
To be completely fair to this signing Ryan Helsley just singed a 2 year 28 million dollar contract so if this deal is 3/45 that really is not that bad.
That’s a lot better than I’d expect given his bad start in NY.
He can be the best closer in baseball for the next 3 years and I’ll still be bitter if we let Diáz walk for him.
Helsley and Williams are pretty similar. Talented relievers that struggled with a new team.
Williams had a 1.66 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 141 IP from 2022-24
Helsley had a 1.83 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in 167.2 IP from 2022-24
Easier to sign the one that didn’t play for you last year (and the one that your President of Baseball Ops is familiar with from his previous team).
People will look at this and see a lot of red=good, but it leaves out the fact that in previous years Williams wasn’t allowing a lot of hard contact. He’d keep it around 85mph exit velocity or under, but last year he allowed 89.5mph. Giving up hard contact is a big issue for a reliever and especially for a high leverage one like Williams.
This is more useful for a reliever than stats like ERA, especially when you consider how crappy the Yankee defense was, how many of his inherited runners the Yankees let in, and how small that ballpark is.
When you look at his FIP and xFIP, last season he was roughly in line with 2023, when he had a 1.53 ERA.
Looking at his actual pitching stats, fastball and change up velocity and stuff have been consistent for 4 years.
All of this points to this being a really good signing.
Any Mets fans who are doubting the advanced stats in regards to Williams, please remember 2019 Diaz – everyone thought he was washed up, but the advanced stats showed that he was unsustainably unlucky and still pitching at an elite level, and he’s been a top closer again ever since.
Just what the Mets need… more guys who don’t throw strikes.