January 9, 2026

Devin Williams was likely one of the first relief pitchers selected in your league last season after joining the New York Yankees. With the Yankees, Williams was projected to potentially lead the sport in saves, closing for one of the top teams in baseball. However, the former Milwaukee Brewer was one of the major disappointments in fantasy as he finished the season with a high 4.79 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. He earned just 18 saves across 62 innings of work. This past winter, Williams inked a three-year deal with their cross-city neighbor, the Mets, and is slated to be their ninth-inning option with Edwin Diaz now in Los Angeles. While his surface-level statistics are not those of an elite closer, Williams showed some signs of progress down the stretch and appears poised to return to his pre-Yankee form. During his first 44 innings of the season, Williams posted a 5.73 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, and a 56:17 K:BB. However, during his final 18 innings, the right-hander logged a strong 2.50 ERA with a 0.89 WHIP. During this stint, he below only one save and struck out an eye-catching 34 batters. Overall, he finished the season sporting a 3.02 xERA and a .192 xBA, placing him in the 88th and 96th percentiles, suggesting he was quite unlucky in the first half. Slated to be the go-to closer on a Mets team that projects to be in the Wild Card race, Williams has 25+ save upside with the potential to carry some of the best ratios and strikeout totals at the RP position. Sitting with an ADP of 66.9 on NFBC since December 1 and going off as the RP9 makes him an intriguing option for an RP1 if you choose to fade the top options. If he can continue to build off his strong finish, Williams has a path to finishing as a top-3 option at the position.--Andy Smith