Aaron Boone isn’t hiding how he feels about Devin Williams right now — the Yankees skipper sees his reliever as locked in, dependable, and critical to New York’s push down the stretch. After a strong outing against the Chicago White Sox, Boone went out of his way to praise Williams’ turnaround.
“Tonight was lights out. He’s responded to adversity well,” Boone said. “At the start of the season, he did and got through that and was really consistent for a couple months. He had a couple weeks there where he struggled again but has responded.”
Dominance in Recent Yankees Outings
The numbers back up the confidence. Over his last eight appearances, Williams has pitched 7.1 innings while allowing just two hits, no runs, and one walk. He’s also struck out an eye-popping 18 batters in that span. That’s dominance in every sense of the word, and it’s given Boone and the Yankees a late-inning weapon they can lean on.
Boone doubled down on that trust. “I got a ton of confidence in what he’s bringing to the table every night he walks out there,” the manager said. “It’s been a lot of that right there. Just kind of looking at his numbers up there on the board, he’s been dominant most of the season, in and around some struggles. I feel like he’s in a great place right now and obviously a huge part of what we’re doing down there.”
From August Struggles to a Key Piece
It wasn’t long ago that things looked different. August started rough for Williams — the Yankees lost all five games in which he appeared early in the month. But he’s flipped the script. Since then, New York has won five of the last six games he’s pitched in, with Williams slamming the door each time.
Overall, the Yankees hold a 38–18 record in games where Williams has pitched this season — a strong indication of his impact on their success.
With his command back, strikeouts piling up, and Aaron Boone’s full confidence, Devin Williams is starting to look like the shutdown arm the Yankees expected when they signed him.
