Devin Williams' postgame interview after blown save puts Yankees fit into question

No rational Yankees fan would fault Devin Williams for requiring an adjustment period as he endures a difficult new reality in New York. The star closer just spent 12 seasons in the Brewers organization after getting drafted out of high school in Missouri. That's quite a 180.

But to go from "best closer in the league" to "borderline unusable in high-leverage situations" in a matter of months seems much too drastic of a swing. To transition from Milwaukee to New York without a hitch would've been wishful thinking, but to see Williams surrender more earned runs in his first 10 Yankees appearances than his previous 61 outings is devilish.

Truth is, nobody truly knows what's going on. Williams dealt with back issues last season that limited him to 21 2/3 innings. Perhaps he's dealing with some lingering effects on the health front?

There's also the fact his most high-profile failure came in October when he had the chance to send Milwaukee to the NLDS, but blew it in do-or-die Game 3 of the Wild Card series against the Mets when he surrendered that back-breaking Pete Alonso home run. That was his last outing before joining the Yanks.

But, on a similar note in terms of mental struggles, is there a chance Williams was just never a fit for New York all along? Did the Yankees once again overlook the human element of the game as they assumed elite talent would seamlessly pick up where it's left off in a much more demanding environment?

Devin Williams' postgame interview after blown save puts Yankees fit into question

Perhaps fans in Milwaukee can help us out here. Yankees fans obviously didn't have much exposure to Williams' interactions with the media while he was a member of the Brewers. But one thing that has been noticeable is his poor body language when on the field. He's so out of sorts that he's making it as obvious as it can be. It brings back unwanted memories of Gleyber Torres, Aaron Hicks, Joey Gallo, etc. Don't remind us. Even when Williams made his first appearance in spring training, fans did ask themselves, "hm, what's going on here?"

Above all else, though, Williams was candid and honest in Friday night's postgame interview when he was asked myriad questions about his struggles. He was subjected to "We want Weaver" chants from the Yankee Stadium crowd, in addition to endless boos as he exited the game before recording a single out on Friday night in the loss to the Blue Jays.

His solemn tone wasn't the problem. Which one us wouldn't be completely deflated after such a start to the year and the first sobering moment of hearing the harsh criticism from the fans? There was a revealing bit of information that raised some concern, however: Williams' response to his comfortability in the Bronx.

"There's a lot of adjustments I've had to make; new life stuff that's going on. At the end of the day I'm here to get outs, and I'm not doing that right now so it doesn't really matter." Then, when asked if it was easy to "settle in" to his new environment, Williams added: "Yeah, I mean, easy enough as New York City can be. But I gotta get things rolling in the right direction."

The video above does more justice than the transcribed quotes, as you can see the delivery with the tone, body language, and relative hesitance/uncertainty. None of this is to say Williams is not a fit with the Yankees; but if we're reading the context clues, it's at least reasonable to ask the question. It's a topic we'd rather not elaborate upon, and never would've if we weren't witnessing a career-worst meltdown at the first sign of change for the former second-round pick. But he hasn't looked right since the day he arrived, and that narrative has continued in the ugliest way possible through the first month of play.

It's now in manager Aaron Boone's hands to repair whatever's gone wrong with Williams. Whether it's a mechanical adjustment, a change in approach, or a brief role switch to help him regain his confidence, the timing here couldn't be more imperative.