Heading into the offseason, there was chatter that the New York Yankees could potentially re-sign relief pitcher Devin Williams, even after a turbulent 2025 campaign.

Williams closed strong to end the regular season, was brilliant in the playoffs and said at the end of the year that he would be open to a return to the Bronx, even if it meant he wouldn't be closing (which he wasn't during the second half of the season).

The Yankees have also seemed interested and have already discussed a reunion with Williams. However, a recent signing by a National League team may have already priced New York out on the two-time All-Star.

The Atlanta Braves re-signed fellow reliever Raisel Iglesias on a one-year, $16 million deal, this after Iglesias totaled 29 saves while logging a 3.21 ERA and 0.995 WHIP this past season.

While Iglesias has been a dominant reliever for most of his career, he definitely displayed signs of decline in 2025, so it stands to reason that Williams — who is about five years younger than Iglesias — will end up earning more money and on a more lengthy contract.

Based on the fact that Williams posted a 4.79 ERA in a wildly inconsistent 2025 campaign, it seems highly unlikely that the Yankees will want to pay in the neighborhood of $20 million annually for the right-hander, even if it's just for one year.

Yes, Williams showed plenty of positive signs down the stretch, and his 2.68 FIP and 13.1 K/9 indicate that he probably suffered from some bad luck in what could have been his lone season in pinstripes. But does New York really want to take that chance?

Hal Steinbrenner is making it very clear that the Yanks are not going to be spendthrift. The fact that he just said it isn't fair to assume that the Yankees make a profit every year is concrete evidence that he is far more frugal than fans want him to be.

Taking that into consideration, it seems rather improbable that general manager Brian Cashman will want to allocate such a substantial portion of the 2026 budget to Williams, who only had two months in 2025 with an ERA under 4.00 and only one month with an ERA under 3.00.

Williams has a pretty robust market right now, and it's also important to remember that other clubs surely view him as a closer. The Yankees, however, may not. Not after David Bednar stole — and kept — the closer role during the closing months of the campaign.

Will the Bronx Bombers be paying $20 million for a middle reliever? It almost certainly isn't going to happen.