The post-Juan Soto pivot for the Yankees rolled on in spectacular fashion Friday, as in exchange for left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. and infield prospect Caleb Durbin. As following the superstar outfielder’s introductory New York Mets news conference on Thursday in Queens, Brian Cashman and Co.
plowed ahead in a crucial winter for the storied franchise and successfully landed one of the biggest names on the trade market in Williams. Cortes and Williams share the unfortunate distinction of having allowed two of the more memorable home runs of this past postseason: Pete Alonso’s go-ahead blast in the decisive Game 3 of the wild-card series in Milwaukee (Williams) and Freddie Freeman’s walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of the World Series in Los Angeles (Cortes). The heartbreaking homers were allowed under drastically different circumstances, with the all-world closer Williams trying to nail down a save like countless times before, compared to a starting pitcher in Cortes being thrust into the highest-leverage situation of his career in a rare relief appearance after an elbow injury sidelined him for several weeks.
While both pitchers’ seasons ended on sour notes, those flashbulb moments shouldn’t cloud our perception of them as they prepare to contribute to their new clubs. Part of why Alonso’s home run was so remarkable is that such impactful swings against Williams have been exceedingly rare over the course of the right-hander’s career. His career 1.
83 ERA and .157 ba.
