The reliever market is starting to heat up, and the latest maneuver signals a significant change for the New York Mets.
The Mets agreed to terms with two-time All-Star Devin Williams on a three-year contract, The Athletic reported, a sign the club is almost certainly moving on from stalwart Edwin Diaz.
Williams, 31, was the 2020 NL Rookie of the Year and earned an NL reliever of the year nod with the Milwaukee Brewers, when he played for current Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns. After a trade to the New York Yankees, struggled for significant stretches and lost his closer job.
Yet with his trademark changeup and career marks of 14.1 strikeouts per nine and a 1.04 WHIP, Williams remains one of the game’s elite relievers. And with a reported value of more than $50 million, the Mets’ investment in Williams likely marks their major relief splash this winter.
That means Diaz, who transitioned from volatile closer to folk hero, will likely move on. He opted out of the final two years of his five-year, $102 million deal with the Mets after posting his second All-Star campaign with the club.
Diaz should easily top Williams’ guaranteed dollars on the open market, where the Los Angeles Dodgers and other top spenders are expected to vie for his services. He struck out 118 batters in 62 innings in his epic 2022 season, when his trumpet-fueled Citi Field entrance became a part of franchise lore.