Batting Around: Which rental closer would you rather trade for, Ryan Helsley or Devin Williams?

Throughout the offseason, the CBS Sports MLB experts will bring you a weekly Batting Around roundtable breaking down pretty much anything. The latest news, a historical question, thoughts about the future of baseball, all sorts of stuff. Last time we picked between Max Fried and Blake Snell. This week we’re going to pick between two All-Star closers who are a year away from free agency.

Which rental closer would you rather trade for: Ryan Helsley or Devin Williams?

R.J. Anderson: I’ll go with Williams. If you compare the two over the last three seasons, he gives up fewer earned runs, hits, and home runs per nine innings. He also strikes out about two additional batters per nine, making it difficult for opposing offenses to sustain rallies despite an elevated walk rate. Plus Williams’ Airbender changeup is fun to watch, which doesn’t necessarily make it more effective, but it does add the aesthetic cherry on top.

Dayn Perry: This is a tough one. Each is a right-handed closer with a history of dominance and injury who’s headed into his walk year in 2025. On the one hand, Helsley is coming off a healthy season in 2024, whereas Williams missed time with a stress fracture in his back followed by a mild case of shoulder soreness. On the other hand, Williams for his career has struck out 39.4% of opposing hitters, which is an absurd figure even by the standards of high-leverage relievers. In the end, I narrowly lean Helsley just because of Williams’ recent back issues.

Matt Snyder: They are essentially the same age and Williams has a 1.66 ERA, 2.29 FIP and 0.97 WHIP over the last three seasons compared to 1.83, 2.35 and 0.95, respectively, for Helsley. Williams did have the injury last season, but strikes batters out at a decently-higher rate and that’s a big deal with closers these days. Just ask, well, Williams himself, who allowed a back-breaking home run to Pete Alonso instead of striking him out in the Wild Card Series. I realize the injury should loom large, but Williams was himself after his return for a full two months and he doesn’t have a ton of wear and tear on his arm given that he wasn’t a full-time reliever in the majors until age 26 and never carried big workloads in the minors. It’s very close, but he’s better so I’m with Williams here. 

Mike Axisa: I am a sucker for pitchers who can reach back and throw 100 mph by hitters in the zone, but Williams has had better fastball whiff rates than Helsley throughout his career because his changeup — the Airbender — is so good that hitters have no choice but to respect it. And it’s not like Williams is a soft-tosser either. He lives in the mid-90s. They both have injury concerns, Helsley with elbow/forearm and Williams with his back, so you’re taking a risk there. Ultimately, Williams has been one of the most dominant and hardest to square up pitchers in the game since his rookie season in 2020. He’s terrific. I’ll take him.