Yankees' Devin Williams Says 'I Stink Right Now' After Struggles in Loss to Astros

Devin Williams didn't mince words about how he's been pitching lately after allowing three runs (two earned) in the New York Yankees' 5-3 loss to the Houston Astros on Friday night.

Speaking to reporters following the game, Williams declared, "I stink right now" after his fifth consecutive appearance allowing at least one run.

"I'm not making pitches," the two-time All-Star closer . "It's pretty simple. I stink right now."

Williams has had a strange season for the Yankees after being acquired in an offseason trade from the Milwaukee Brewers. He was a mess at the start of 2025, posting a 10.03 ERA in his first 14 appearances.

From May 7 through July 27, Williams was back in peak form with a 2.28 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 27.2 innings over 29 appearances. He was 12-for-12 in save opportunities during that span.

In his last five appearances dating back to July 29, Williams has as many strikeouts as homers allowed (three). He has blown two saves and been charged with the loss in two other games.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone gave Williams four days off from July 31 to Aug. 3 due to his workload at that point, but then used him in back-to-back games on Aug. 4-5.

Boone told reporters after Friday's game that he had to turn to Williams because the Yankees are "kind of short" in the bullpen right now. The club recently optioned Jake Bird, who was acquired from the Colorado Rockies prior to the trade deadline, to Triple-A amid his struggles. They also released JT Brubaker on Thursday.

The Yankees and Astros were tied 2-2 going into the 10th. Williams started the inning with a wild pitch that advanced Jose Altuve to third, then gave up a single to Carlos Correa that allowed the go-ahead run to score.

After retiring the next two batters, Williams gave up a two-run homer to Taylor Trammell. The Yankees did get a run back to start the bottom of the inning and had the winning run at the plate with two outs, but Astros closer Josh Hader got Trent Grisham to line out to end the game.

Friday's loss continued the recent struggles for the Yankees. They have lost six of their first seven games to start August and haven't had a winning month since going 17-9 in May.

New York (61-55) has lost 13.5 games in the AL East standings in just over two months. The Bronx Bombers led the division by seven games on May 28, but they now trail the first-place Toronto Blue Jays by 6.5 games.

In addition to losing ground in the division race, the Yankees are clinging to the final wild card spot in the AL with the Cleveland Guardians (60-55) just one game back in the win column entering play on Saturday.