The Cincinnati Reds got a strong season in 2025 out of Emilio Pagan. He posted a 2.88 ERA while throwing 68.2 innings and racking up 32 saves for the club. Opponents hit just .168/.241/.336 against him. Following the season he became a free agent. And he wasn’t the only reliever who headed into free agency, which we discussed earlier this week. The Reds have some guys to replace in the bullpen for 2026. One of the guys they are showing interest in according to Will Sammon of The Athletic is Devin Williams, a guy who has historically dominated the club after spending much of his career with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Williams would make his big league debut in 2019 with Milwaukee and posted a 3.95 ERA in 13 games that season. When he returned in 2020 he was an elite pitcher, giving up one run in 27.0 innings in the 60-game season. He continued to make a mockery of hitters over the next four seasons and when 2024 ended he had a 1.83 ERA for his career.
What he did against the Cincinnati Reds during that time was comical. The Reds faced him in 34 games from 2019-2024 and hit .098/.189/.143 against him and struck out 64 times in 127 plate appearances. They scored just five earned runs against him (1.32 ERA).
13 months ago, though, the Brewers traded Devin Williams to the New York Yankees. Things did not go nearly as well for him as his ERA soared to 4.79 with the Yankees as he pitched a career high 62 innings in a career high 67 appearances. He allowed hits at a higher rate than ever before and had his lowest strikeout rate of his career (though it was still an elite strikeout rate). Williams did have the lowest walk rate he’s had since 2020 and hitters still hit just .196 against him.
Williams is projected to get paid well in 2026. The question is how much he will get after that. The Athletic’s free agent board projects that he will get a 1-year deal for $18,000,000. That’s quite a bit different than what MLB Trade Rumors projects him to get $68,000,000 over four years. ESPN’s Jeff Passan projects a 3-year deal for $45,000,000.
All three of those numbers are big for the Reds. Committing to one year for them is a lot different than doing so for four years. But it’s also important to note that even if the Reds wind up at the Passan estimate of $15,000,000 per year, that’s probably at least half of what the club is expected to spend on free agents this year, perhaps more.
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