Yankees Rumors: MLB insider all but confirms Devin Williams' departure in free agency

Last we heard from Devin Williams, he was professing his love for playing in New York. It was an odd development considering that his one year in the Bronx seemed certain to get him strong consideration for the next iteration of the list of guys who definitely couldn't handle playing for the Yankees.

The Yankees certainly need to rebuild their bullpen, but it's unknown if they had the same strange inclination toward a reunion that Williams did. Now with free agency upon us, we're about to get some clarity, and according to one MLB insider, it looks like Williams will, in fact, have some new digs next season.

MLB insider reports Devin Williams is receiving heavy interest, likely shutting the door on a Yankees return

Jon Morosi reports that Devin Williams is receiving significant interest with teams looking at him either in a setup role or as a closer. Morosi also added that one team that he expects to be extremely active in free agency is the San Francisco Giants, and that a West Coast landing spo is a likely destination for him.

Based on Morosi's report, as well as some contract projections like the three-year, $45 million deal ESPN's Kiley McDaniel is predicting for the 30-year-old once-dominant reliever, it seems as if teams are buying into Williams' second-half surge.

Much of the perceived turnaround from Williams down the stretch is just that: perception. There are individual performances one can pick out where he did look like his old self, but his second-half ERA of 5.06 is higher than the 4.58 number he put up pre-All-Star break.

Most of the good feelings around Williams come from 9 2/3 September innings in which he posted a 3.72 ERA. While encouraging, it wasn't even his best 9 2/3-inning stretch of the season. That came in June when he recorded a 0.93 mark over the same sample that is too small to draw meaningful conclusions from.

In the end, it is entirely possible that Williams bounces back in a more laid-back, West Coast environment. What's for sure is that this is a dice roll other teams can take, but not the Yankees. The bullpen is in such dire straits that counting on a bounce-back when the fit was clearly an odd one would be a fool's errand, and getting into some sort of strange bidding war for his services would be a huge mistake.