Two seasons ago, New York Mets reliever Edwin Diaz was one of the best closers in baseball. His entrance from the bullpen at Citi Field, accompanied by “Narco” and the song’s powerful trumpets, electrified the crowd as the team won 101 games.
In 2024 it was a different story for Diaz. Returning from a torn patellar tendon in his right knee that sidelined him for the entire 2023 season, the right-hander has had several tough outings on the mound. In his past three appearances, Diaz has allowed seven runs and seven hits in 2 1/3 innings.
That performance shook the reliever’s confidence so much that Mets manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters that Diaz’s role as closer would be “fluid.”
After recording four runs and four hits in just 1/3 of an inning against the Miami Marlins on Saturday, Diaz was overcome with emotion as he finished answering postgame questions and reporters left the clubhouse.
“When we finished the postgame scrum, he sat down and all the emotions just came out,” said reporter Steve Gelbs on Sunday’s SNY pregame show. ‘He put his head in his hands and started to cry. Francisco Lindor had to come to him to comfort him.’
“Díaz sat down and all the emotion came out”@SteveGelbs reports on the scene in the clubhouse after yesterday’s game with Edwin Díaz and how the Mets want to regain confidence in him
“The Mets Still Believe Old Edwin Diaz Is In There” pic.twitter.com/EwxOHiJZFd
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 19, 2024
Diaz told reporters that he was open to being moved out of the closer role and that he needs to regain his confidence amid his struggles.
“I’m not going to lie, my confidence is down right now,” Diaz said, via Alanis Thames of the AP. “I’m making pitches. I’m throwing strikes. I’m trying to do my best to help the team win. Right now, I’m not in that capacity.”
“Right now you can see he’s putting pressure on himself because he’s not getting results.”
Carlos Mendoza says trust is his biggest concern right now with Edwin Díaz: pic.twitter.com/6m1jf5TYYI
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 18, 2024
Between that admission and Diaz’s display of emotion, Mendoza is apparently looking for a reset by taking some of the pressure off his closer by throwing in less-than-safe situations.
“Right now he’s going through it, he’s going through a rough patch,” Mendoza told reporters, including SNY’s Alex Smith. “Our job is to get him back on track. He’ll do whatever it takes to help this team win a baseball game, whether it’s in the seventh, the eighth, the ninth, whatever that is, lose or win.”
