NEW YORK — The Yankees beefed up their bullpen on Friday afternoon, agreeing to a trade that will bring Devin Williams to the Bronx.

The Yankees are sending Nestor Cortes and infield prospect Caleb Durbin to the Brewers in the trade for the closer. Milwaukee is also receiving cash considerations.

While stress fractures in his back limited Williams to 22 games last season, the 30-year-old has been one of baseball’s best relievers since debuting with Milwaukee in 2019. Over that span, Williams ranks first in H/9 (4.9), second in ERA (1.83), fourth in K.9 (14.3) and sixth in HR/9 (0.6) among relievers with at least 200 innings pitched.

A two-time All-Star and two-time National League Reliever of the Year, the right-handed Williams also saved 65 games over the last three seasons, including a career-high 36 in 2023. Armed with a unique change-up nicknamed “The Airbender,” he recorded sub-2.00 ERAs in each of those seasons.

Williams, the 2020 National League Rookie of the Year, figures to be the Yankees’ new closer. While he worked as a set-up man earlier in his career, manager Aaron Boone was non-committal when asked if he considered Luke Weaver the Yankees’ closer in 2025 at the winter meetings.

Weaver did admirable work in the role late in the 2024 season and playoffs after Clay Holmes lost the gig.

“Depends where we go this offseason,” Boone said of Weaver, who worked as a versatile reliever for most of 2024 after being converted from a starter. “I think he was as dominant a reliever as there was in the game, especially in the second half with his emergence. I have a ton of confidence in Luke. Whatever role that ends up being, whether it is the traditional closer, we’ll just hopefully put him in the best position to be successful. And definitely have a lot of expectation and confidence that he’s going to be hopefully a part of another really strong bullpen.”

The Yankees’ bullpen, while incomplete, is certainly mightier with the addition of Williams, who also joins the recently re-signed Jonathan Loáisiga, Ian Hamilton, Jake Cousins, Mark Leiter Jr., Scott Effross and Clayton Beeter.

The team has also expressed interest in re-signing Tim Hill — the 40-man roster is missing a left-handed reliever — and Tommy Kahnle. The two have mutual interest in a reunion but have received intrigue from other suitors.

As dominant as Williams has been in the regular season, he’s struggled over his limited experience in the playoffs. He has allowed six earned runs over 2 1/3 innings in the postseason.

Like Cortes, Williams is scheduled to be a free agent after this season. Both pitchers are also scheduled to make $7.7 million in arbitration.

Cortes became expendable after the Yankees agreed to an eight-year, $218 million deal with Max Fried during the winter meetings. Even with Cortes shipping out, the Bombers still have six starters (Fried, Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt, Luis Gil and Marcus Stroman) for five rotation spots. With the Yankees also interested in cost-effective Japanese ace Rōki Sasaki don’t be surprised if they trade another member of that group.

On Wednesday, Brian Cashman noted that teams were actively asking the Yankees about their starting surplus.

“If we find that there are matches that make sense, then you start to seriously consider it,” the general manager said. “So you just have to have those conversations, which we’re having. I don’t know where it’s gonna take us.”

Friday’s trade marks the end of Cortes’ third stint with the Yankees.

A 36th-round draft pick in 2013, Rule 5 Draft returnee in 2018, and mop-up reliever early in his career, the crafty southpaw matured into a valuable starter and tremendous success story in New York. Known for his trickery on the mound, the 30-year-old Cortes was an All-Star and finished eighth in Cy Young voting in 2022. He had a 2.61 ERA over 251 1/3 innings from 2021-2022, but injuries hindered his performance in 2023, as he finished with a 4.97 ERA after 12 starts.

In 2024, Cortes recorded a 3.77 ERA over 31 games (30 starts), but he ended the regular season on the injured list with a flexor strain. However, he avoided surgery, went through an expedited rehab process and returned for the World Series.

Pitching out of the bullpen, Cortes allowed a walk-off grand slam to the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman in his first game back. With Hill, a fellow lefty also warming, Boone was widely panned for the choice.

Back in July, Cortes’ name surfaced in trade rumors, but he managed to survive the deadline.

“I’m almost confident that the Yankees want me enough to stay here. Sometimes it’s just because they need to improve in other areas,” Cortes said, foreshadowing the circumstances surrounding his eventual departure.

Durbin, meanwhile, had been mentioned as an option to replace Gleyber Torres, a free agent, at second base. The 24-year-old was well-liked throughout the Yankees’ organization thanks to his high contact rates and low strikeout numbers.

Durbin set career highs with 25 doubles, 10 home runs and a .451 slugging percentage last season, adding some pop to a .275 average, .388 on-base percentage, 60 RBIs, 31 steals and a 9.9 K%. The short, versatile infielder then hit .312/.427/.548 with five home runs and 21 RBIs in 24 Arizona Fall League games. His 29 stolen bases set the league’s record, and he won the AFL’s Breakout Prospect of the Year Award.

In 2,392 plate appearances since the start of his college career, Durbin has struck out just 153 times.

“He’s been gifted with a superpower of not ever swinging and missing, and with that power comes great responsibility, as they say,” former Yankees Triple-A hitting coach Trevor Amicone, who is now with the Twins, said while detailing Durbin’s focus on hitting for more power last year. “When he swings, he’s going to make contact, so he has got to be very selectively aggressive at the pitches that he swings at.”

The Yankees originally acquired Durbin and Indigo Diaz from the Braves for Lucas Luetge in December 2022.

With Durbin out of the picture, the Yankees could move Jazz Chisholm Jr. back to second base, his most experienced position, if they add a third baseman via trade or free agency. Other internal candidates at second include Oswaldo Cabrera, Jorbit Vivas and Oswald Peraza.

“We were very surprised how he took to a very difficult position, and it certainly wasn’t perfect because it was new to him, but golly, he at least made you realize that it’s possible that you might already have your third baseman,” Cashman said of Chisholm, who learned the hot corner on the fly last season. “I think middle infield is probably easier, because it’s something that he’s done. Third still is something he’ll finish off, if that’s where he stays, but I don’t know, it just depends on the directions, the opportunities.”

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