One rival that Atlanta Braves fans love to keep close tabs on is the Mets as they are kind of the perfeft villain for Braves Country. Long-time division rival? Check. Deep recent history with real stakes? Check. Super rich owner that will spend whatever it takes to win?. Yep, have that, too. It is not coincidence that one of the biggest reactions from Braves fans so far this offseason was when it was reported that the Mets had traded for Marcus Semien.
The Braves have certainly flamed that rivalry this offseason after stealing two coaches from New York, but Atlanta has been primarily been focused on putting together a roster that can even compete at the top of the division.
As it turns out, the Mets may have just made catching a little more possible. On Monday night, it was reported that the Mets were signing Devin Williams to a three year, $51 million deal. That may not look of particular interest to Braves fans, but that signing just made Edwin Diaz’s return to New York a good bit less likely and that would be just fantastic.
Braves’ top division rival may have just gotten worse after Devin Williams signing, but don’t take a victory lap yet
It is fair to argue both sides of Williams as a reliever and free agent. It is absolutely true that Williams has a long track record of being one of the better bullpen arms in baseball and has the swing and miss stuff teams are looking for. However, Williams has also dealt with some health issues over the last couple of years, was tipping his pitches, and just put together the worst season of his career with a 4.79 ERA in 67 appearances with the Yankees.
However, we can all agree that Williams is very likely to be worse than Diaz, right? Crazier things have happened, but Diaz is a top 5 reliever in baseball right now and with the Mets clearly signing Williams to protect themselves from Diaz leaving, the Braves’ rival’s bullpen is already worse than it was in 2025.
Of course, things could turn against the Braves in a hurry if, say, the Mets just re-sign Diaz anyways. In that scenario, New York’s bullpen starts looking pretty scary with both Williams and Diaz patrolling the late innings. For the moment, it just feels good that the Mets are struggling to remake a bloated roster and can’t seem to get out of their own way.