Milwaukee Brewers star closer Devin Williams has two stress fractures in his back and is expected to miss around three months. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN. Williams pitched through back soreness in September, but it returned earlier this spring. He'll rehab and should return by midseason.
Devin Williams visited back specialist Dr. Robert Watkins yesterday, and he diagnosed pars fractures on both sides of Williams’ T12 vertebra. Williams will be shut down for six weeks and rehab for another six, and Watkins expressed confidence that Williams would make a full recovery. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN.
The thing that makes this injury even worse is that opening day for the Brewers is just two weeks away. No team ever expects one of their players to miss a lot of time. The Brewers don't have much time to try to replace Devin Williams in their bullpen.
There's no question that Devin Williams is one of the best closers in all of baseball. Williams is an absolute workhorse. In 2023, Williams appeared in 61 games, he posted a 8-3 record, 1.53 ERA, 87 K's, and a 0.920 WHIP.
This is brutal news for the Brewers. The Brewers will most certainly miss Devin Williams in the time that he is out. Now, the Brewers other pitchers will have to step it up. Whenever one of your players go down with injury, you have to count on your other players to step it up. Hopefully Devin Williams can make a speedy recovery.