In Friday’s win against the Phillies, Edwin Diaz blew another big save for the Mets and was luckily bailed out by the just as rubbish Phillies bullpen. He was lucky enough to get a win when the Mets won on a walk off walk in the bottom to of the ninth. It was the seventh blown save and the 14th home run Diaz has allowed in his disappointing first season in New York. With Diaz pitching so poorly, the Mets have to stop putting him back in big spots until they can fully trust him again.
This guy…#RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/bpnRwzeNFz
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) September 7, 2019
Diaz has been battling himself and struggling all year. He has shown glimmers of promise, followed by hitting new lows. Through 59 games he has a 5.88 ERA in 52 innings, but has a 15.2 K/9. This is the same exact K/9 he had during his stellar 2018 season with the Mariners. His strikeout ability is why Mickey Callaway keeps giving him chances in big moments.
Diaz Has to Fall Down the Depth Chart
If you handed anyone Diaz stats without his name attached to it, no one would tell you he deserves to close games. So why is he still doing so for Mickey Callaway? This is on Callaway as much as on Edwin Diaz. The Mets were off Thursday and despite Seth Lugo throwing two innings on Wednesday, he is a better option to turn to. If Lugo’s elbow is a concern, then Justin Wilson is just as good of an option as well.
https://twitter.com/JakeBrownRadio/status/1169075708603355136
Diaz has to show he can consistently pitch well in low leverage situations before he can go back to meaningful situations. It is already way too late in the season to continue having the closer role continue to be a major liability. Yes, his stuff looks electric, but it is not consistent. The Kurt Suzuki home run was a 100 mph fastball down the middle and J.T. Reamuto’s was a slider right down the middle. No matter how good someone’s stuff is, they will not get away with those mistakes.
https://twitter.com/ESM_Mets/status/1170155771822321665
If the postseason started today, it is hard to see Edwin Diaz making the roster. It would have to be a coin flip between him and Jeurys Familia for a fringe spot. There is a small window for Diaz to figure himself out, but his time is quickly running out. For Diaz and the Mets, they would be better off getting the idea of closing games, out of each other’s head starting Saturday night.