Devin Williams of the Milwaukee Brewers named the National League Reliever of the Month for July; Félix Bautista of the Baltimore Orioles named the American League Reliever of the Month for July

All-Star closer Devin Williams has been voted the National League Reliever of the Month for July, and All-Star closer Félix Bautista of the Baltimore Orioles has been voted the American League Reliever of the Month for July.

Williams, who was named an All-Star for the second straight year, earned his third career Reliever of the Month Award and first since August 2021. It is the Major League-leading 14th time a Brewers pitcher earned Reliever of the Month honors, and the first honor for Milwaukee since Josh Hader in April 2022. Nicknamed “The Airbender,” Williams also won the award in September 2020 and August 2021, and joins other Brewers relievers including: John Axford (July 2011), Francisco Cordero (April 2007), Hader (April 2018, May and June 2019, April 2022), Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman (May 2009), Corey Knebel (August 2017 and September 2018), and Brent Suter (September 2019). Bautista, who pitched in his first career Midsummer Classic earlier in the month, earned AL Reliever of the Month for the second straight month. Overall, it is his third career Reliever of the Month Award and his third of the 2023 campaign after winning for April and June. He is the first O’s reliever to win the award on multiple occasions as Jim Johnson was the only other pitcher in team history to take home the honor (May 2012).

Devin Williams, Milwaukee Brewers (_dvn23)

• The 28-year-old right-hander went 1-1 with 10 saves in 11 opportunities and a 1.54 ERA in his 12 July appearances. In 11.2 innings pitched, the veteran surrendered three runs (two earned) on seven hits with four walks and 21 strikeouts.
• The St. Louis, Missouri native tallied multiple strikeouts in eight of his 12 appearances, striking out three batters in his save on July 22nd at Atlanta.
• The Brewers second round pick in the 2013 Draft did not allow a run in nine consecutive games from July 7th-26th, tossing 8.2 innings over the stretch with 18 strikeouts.
• Williams earned a save on three straight days from July 14th-July 16th, closing out each game of a three-game sweep in Cincinnati to become one of four big league relievers this year to record a save in every game of a series.
• Williams became the 11th reliever (16th occurrence) in Brewers franchise history to record 10 saves in a single month. On Tuesday night at Washington, he made his 200th career appearance.

Félix Bautista, Baltimore Orioles (@felixbautista_20)

• The 28-year-old right-hander compiled a 3-0 record with a 0.00 ERA and converted all eight of his save opportunities across his 11 appearances last month. In 14.0 innings pitched, he allowed just three hits with four walks and 25 strikeouts.
• The Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic native collected multiple strikeouts in all but two of his appearances during the month, and Bautista got more than three outs in three of his appearances.
• The 6’8” 285-pound closer converted saves on consecutive days on July 14th-15th and July 22nd-23rd and has now recorded a save on back-to-back days on four occasions this season.
• Bautista entered play today ranking third in the Majors with 29 saves on the season. His 17.59 strikeouts per nine innings lead big league relievers and his 101 strikeouts are 24 more than any other reliever in Baseball as he attempts to become the first pitcher in history with at least 13.0 innings pitched to average over two strikeouts per inning across an entire season.

Others receiving votes for NL Reliever of the Month included All-Star Josh Hader (0.00 ERA, 11 G, 7 SV, 10.1 IP, 16 SO) of the San Diego Padres; Alexis Díaz (0-1, 2.38 ERA, 13 G, 10 SV, 11 SO) of the Cincinnati Reds; Javier Assad (1-0, 0.47 ERA, 8 G, 19.1 IP, 20 SO) of the Chicago Cubs; All-Star David Bednar (1-1, 0.79 ERA, 10 G, 5 SV, 11.1 IP, 17 SO) of the Pittsburgh Pirates; Giovanny Gallegos (1-0, 0.68, 12 G, 13.1 IP, 15 SO) of the St. Louis Cardinals, Raisel Iglesias (0-2, 2.00 ERA, 10 G, 7 SV, 9.0 IP, 11 SO) of the Atlanta Braves; and Williams’ bullpen-mate Joel Payamps (2-1, 1.50 ERA, 12 G, 2 SV, 12.0 IP, 16 SO) of the Brewers.

Others receiving votes for AL Reliever of the Month included Nick Pivetta (3-1, 1.91 ERA, 6 G, 1 GS, 28.1 IP, 43 SO), who struck out a franchise record 13 batters in relief on July 17th, and Chris Murphy (1-0, 1.47 ERA, 5 G, 18.1 IP, 15 SO) of the Boston Red Sox; and Justin Topa (0.82 ERA, 13 G, 1 SV, 11.0 IP, 11 SO) of the Seattle Mariners.