What Mets' latest signing means for Edwin Díaz's future

What Mets' latest signing means for Edwin Díaz's future originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Closer Devin Williams, who spent the 2025 season with the New York Yankees, has reportedly signed with the New York Mets. What does that mean for the future of free agent All-Star closer Edwin Díaz, who's been with the Mets since 2019?

Will Sammon of The Athletic reported on Monday night that Williams signed with the Mets, while ESPN's Jeff Passan added that it was a three-year, $50 million deal. Does this mean that Díaz is gone? It shouldn't.

In bygone eras, yes, Díaz would be as good as gone. No team would commit that kind of money to a closer, only to turn around and spend similar (or, likely, more) money on another closer. But enough has changed in recent years that we can't rule the possibility out.

First of all, Williams struggled mightily in his one season with the Yankees. He finished the year with a 4.79 ERA, 1.129 WHIP and 90 strikeouts in 62 innings. By comparison, in his final three seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers, Williams posted a 1.66 ERA, 0.965 WHIP and averaged 102 strikeouts over 65 innings. Sure, this kind of money indicates that the Mets believe that 2025 was likely just a hiccup. And while that might be the case, it's also nice to have an insurance policy.

Diaz, meanwhile, posted a 1.63 ERA with a 0.874 WHIP in 2025. He also struck out 98 batters in 66.1 innings pitched. Since his disastrous first season with the Mets in 2019, Diaz has posted a 2.36 WHIP, 0.977 WHIP and a 14.6 K.9 rate.

Furthermore, as baseball has changed over the years, pitchers aren't going deep into games. A starter going seven, or even six, innings, is increasingly rare. That raises the need for more shutdown relievers in a bullpen. As we've also seen, managers are increasingly more willing to use their best relievers to get out of tight spots, even if those tight spots aren't in the ninth inning. Having two All-Star closers on the roster makes that even more of an option.

We can't say that the Mets signing Williams is a good thing for fans of the team hoping to see Díaz re-signed. That said, it shouldn't be disqualified either. You can never have too much good relief pitching. At the very least, bringing Díaz back would be a tremendous insurance policy for the Mets, and one Steve Cohen can afford.