Just a day ago, WFAN’s Chris McMonigle aimed at Devin Williams, basically blaming him for the Yankees’ season falling apart. He even said, “If I could point to one player and say you lost us the division, it’s you.” And guess what, Williams didn’t exactly take that lying down. He clapped back at the Bleacher Creatures, saying, “For a bunch of people who didn’t want me back, you guys sure are mad in my DMs.”

So yes, there’s plenty of bad blood on both sides right now, and Williams clearly isn’t willing to shoulder all the blame for the Yankees’ forgettable 2025 season. And honestly, he’s got his reasons.

“As far as June, I don’t know. We played three months after that, so I thought I ended the year on a pretty good run the last two months. But yeah, I think I’m just going to take that and try to carry it over into next season.” Williams opened up about his last season on his

There’s no doubt that Williams’ 2025 season with the Yankees was rough. He finished with a career-worst 4.79 ERA and blew four of his 22 save chances. But if you look past the surface, especially at his final two months, he was actually lights-out. Notably, in August alone, he struck out an absurd 49% of the hitters he faced.

For the unversed, that’s the fourth-best strikeout month by any pitcher all season (with at least 40 plate appearances)!!!

His issues were his brutal start with the Yankees, posting an 11.25 ERA over his first 10 games before settling in with a much more respectable 3.83 ERA across his final 57. And despite those early blowups, he was still punching out hitters at an elite rate. His 34.7% strikeout percentage in 2025 put him in the 97th percentile!

So the idea that he alone ruined the Yankees’ season doesn’t really hold up, especially considering the team had issues everywhere. For instance, Aaron Judge had a monster regular season, but came up empty in big postseason spots. Remember that bases-loaded, no-out chance in Game 1 of the ALDS? Then Anthony Volpe led the league with 19 errors. So, the failures were collective, not individual.

And now the fact that Williams jumped across town to the Mets, it’s no surprise he isn’t willing to be the lone scapegoat for the Yankees’ 2025 collapse. The narrative around him feels more like fallout from that defection than an honest read of his season.

The Yankees still have the chance to get the better of Williams

With Devin Williams now heading to the Mets, continuing that recent trend of big Yankee names like Juan Soto and Clay Holmes jumping across town, the Yankees suddenly have a chance to flip the script. And guess what, they can do it directly at Williams’ expense. The hint? Edwin Diaz.

Well, the Mets’ star closer is on the market, and after reports of him re-signing with the Mets were shot down, things got interesting. The Athletic’s Jim Bowden even projected Diaz to land a five-year, $88 million deal with the Yankees this offseason! Yes, a pretty shocking number, considering most people expect him to clear $100 million over five years, but the suitor’s name makes it more interesting.

So while the Mets seem to be envisioning Williams setting up for Diaz, the Yankees actually have a shot to break this trend of losing stars to Queens by grabbing the Mets’ own ace reliever.

But will they actually pull the trigger? That’s the million-dollar question, especially with the Yankees’ track record of moving slowly when it comes to big-ticket free-agent battles.