The San Francisco Giants need some bullpen help before the 2026 MLB season starts. There\u2019s a reliever available on the free agent market right now who should get a look.<\/p>\n
Devin Williams was pretty much a disaster last season for the New York Yankees. He went from being the Yankees closer for manager Aaron Boone to coming in as a mid-inning bridge pitcher.<\/p>\n
It was not a good look for Williams, who had put together some impressive numbers before going to The Bronx.<\/p>\n
Now, Williams is on the market and the Giants should take a look at picking him up. Even if it\u2019s just on a one-year deal.<\/p>\n
In looking at a number of free agents on the market, an article from The Athletic painted a picture of Williams\u2019 good and bad points.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith his famed \u2018Airbender\u2019 changeup, Williams was a two-time Reliever of the Year during his six seasons with the Brewers, but he\u2019s coming off the worst season of his career with the Yankees,\u201d according to the article from The Athletic.<\/p>\n
\u201cRemoved from the closer role in April, Williams never regained his old form,\u201d the article indicates. \u201cHis expected statistics suggest there was some bad luck involved, but Williams\u2019 strikeout rate was a career-low 25 percent, and he was slightly more homer-prone than usual.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore last season, Williams was considered among the best relievers in baseball,\u201d The Athletic article states. \u201cHe was the NL Rookie of the Year in 2020 and earned All-Star nods in two of his six seasons with Milwaukee.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn March of 2024, though, Williams was diagnosed with two stress fractures in his back and pitched just 22 times that season,\u201d according to the article. \u201cHe was traded to the Yankees last winter and is hitting the open market a little more than a month after his 31st birthday.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the Giants are among the best landing spots, according to the article, two other teams are mentioned as possible new homes for Williams \u2013 the Arizona Diamondbacks and Miami Marlins.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s possible that any one of those three teams sign Williams for a one-year contract valued at $18 million.<\/p>\n
Because Williams has previous National League experience, he\u2019s probably built up a knowledge base about some of those teams. The Giants could refresh Williams\u2019 ideas when it comes to pitching against those teams.<\/p>\n
They might even be able to take video of Williams pitching for the Brewers, compare it to his time with the Yankees, and point out issues that he can address.<\/p>\n
Having Williams as an option out of the bullpen would help Giants manager Tony Vitello out a whole lot. If Williams could return to the National League and find his old patterns, then he\u2019d be an excellent pick-up for San Francisco.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s see if the Giants can get Williams at a sweetheart deal during free agency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The San Francisco Giants need some bullpen help before the 2026 MLB season starts. There\u2019s a reliever available on the free agent market right now who should get a look.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":124742,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-124741","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n