Brewers Trade Devin Williams to the Yankees

Just a day after the conclusion of the winter meetings, one of the hottest trade chips of the offseason is finally on the move.

Per Jeff Passan, the Milwaukee Brewers have traded closer Devin Williams to the New York Yankees in exchange for southpaw Nestor Cortes and infield prospect Caleb Durbin. It’s also reported that the Yankees are including roughly $4.5 million in the deal as well.

Trade rumors regarding their all-world closer have surrounded the ball club since the offseason began. It wasn’t so much a matter of if the Brewers were going to trade Williams, but more when a deal was going to happen, and where he was going to land.

The Airbender now has a new home in the Bronx, and the Brewers continue their cycle of trading their most coveted assets in an attempt to better other parts of their roster.

Milwaukee’s Return

Nestor Cortes

The focal point of the return for the Brewers is Nestor Cortes. A lefty with a funky delivery, Cortes put together some impressive stretches as a starter for the Yankees in recent seasons.

Cortes was an All-Star back in 2022, where he pitched to a 2.44 ERA to go with a 3.13 FIP across 158.1 innings pitched. His diverse pitch mix combined with his unorthodox style of delivery keeps hitters uncomfortable in the batter’s box.

When healthy, Cortes can be a very efficient starter who can generate weak contact. Back in his All-Star 2022 season, Cortes had a barrel rate of 5.3%, a hard-hit rate of 34.7%, and an average exit velocity of just 87.9 mph.

Likewise, not only did he pitch to soft contact, but he had a walk rate of just 6.2%, and he was in the 73rd percentile in strikeout rate (26.5%).

However, a left rotator cuff strain hampered his 2023 season, forcing him to make just 12 starts and pitch 63.1 innings. Cortes returned to the bump in 2024 and pitched to a solid 3.77 ERA (109 ERA+) to go with a FIP of 3.84.

The Brewers value pitchers who throw strikes and can pitch to weak contact, and Cortes has proven to do both of those things. It’s not flashy, but it’s valuable for a team like the Brewers who have been one of the best defensive units in all of baseball in recent seasons.

What’s more, he has an arsenal that fits right in with what the Brewers like to work with. On top of throwing a changeup, a sweeper, and a slider, he also throws three different types of fastballs (four-seam, cutter, sinker).

The price tag for starting pitching has been extremely rich in free agency thus far. Bringing in Cortes via trade is a way for them to get a reliable starter at an affordable price tag who can help buoy the back of the rotation. In many ways, it’s a fit that makes a lot of sense for the Brewers.

Cortes is set to hit the open market following the 2025 season, and he is set to make roughly $8.3 million in his final year of arbitration this offseason, according to Spotrac.

Caleb Durbin

The second player coming back to the Brewers is infield prospect Caleb Durbin. Durbin, 24, also fits the mold of a player the Brewers tend to go after.

Durbin is a very versatile defender. In Triple-A last season, Durbin made 37 starts at second base, 19 starts at third base, and 13 starts at shortstop. He even made a handful of starts in both left field and center field as well.

With Willy Adames no longer in the picture for the Brewers, fans wondered how Milwaukee’s infield was going to look moving forward. The acquisition of Durbin suggest they are going to lean into the element of versatility to piece together their shortstop position in 2025.

With Durbin now in the mix, the Brewers now have three players who could spend some time at shortstop in Durbin, Joey Ortiz, and Brice Turang. Assuming Turang remains primarily as their everyday second baseman, third base and shortstop will likely be a combination of Ortiz and Durbin moving forward.

Durbin doesn’t have a lot of power to speak of, but he has elite plate discipline and brings even more speed to what was the fastest lineup in baseball in 2024. Durbin stole 29 bases in Triple-A in 2024, and he also recently set the Arizona Fall League record for stolen bases with 29.

Across three levels in the minors in 2024, Durbin drew 53 walks to just 40 strikeouts, while getting on base at a .388 clip. Couple his impressive pitch selection with his strong bat-to-ball skills, and there’s plenty of intrigue in his offensive game. He ended the 2024 season with a .839 OPS in 406 minor league plate appearances.

Defensive versatility, speed, and strong plate discipline are all qualities the Brewers gravitate towards, and Durbin checks all of those boxes. While there are questions as to how high is offensive ceiling may be, he’s a high-floor player and should fit right in with the Brewers.

New York’s Return

The New York Yankees were in need of a high-leverage reliever after Clay Holmes left via free agency, and they went out and acquired one of the best in the business in Devin Williams.

The 2020 NL Rookie of the Year and two-time NL Reliever of the Year award winner has been one of baseball’s best and most consistent closers over the past handful of years. He had a 1.93 ERA in 2022, a 1.53 ERA in 2023, and a 1.25 ERA in 2024.

On top of his elite run prevention, he’s consistently been one of the top strikeout artists in the sport. He’s had a strikeout rate of 37% or higher every year since 2020, and he has a career whiff rate of a whopping 41.5%.

That level of steady dominance does not come around too often, and the Yankees capitalized on their opportunity to bring their bullpen to a whole new level.

While losing an arm like Cortes hurts, there was simply no room for him in the starting rotation in 2025. After signing Max Fried to the largest contract ever handed out to a left-handed pitcher, Cortes got phased out of the rotation, and the Yankees capitalized on the value he had left.

While Williams is only under contract for one more season before hitting free agency, it feels like the fair price to pay for one year of one of the best closers in MLB.

The Yankees are gearing up to make another World Series run in 2025, and Williams is going to play a massive role in accomplishing that. After what Luke Weaver showed at the tail end of the 2024 season, the combination of Weaver and Williams closing out ballgames could end up being one of the best in baseball in 2025.

For the Brewers, it certainly stings to lose a player like Williams, who has been such an instrumental part of their success for the past half decade. However, trading Williams was the best course of action for the organization moving forward.

While it isn’t the flashiest of acquisitions, it’s one that makes a lot of sense for their roster. It addresses two of their big holes- third base and the starting rotation- without compromising their ability to compete in 2025, and that is exactly the type of move that has kept the Brewers so competitive for such a prolonged period of time.