“Sure, I kind of lost focus throughout those last couple of days of the World Baseball Classic,” Alexis said through the Reds’ interpreter, Jorge Merlos.Īlexis entered the game against Mexico in the seventh inning, with Puerto Rico leading, 4-2. Alexis had grown accustomed to sharing the same clubhouse with his brother, talking with him one-on-one, plotting out each day. Puerto Rico’s quarterfinal against Mexico was March 17. Things like that happen.Įdwin was hurt March 15. Instead, he latched onto positive messages: We got you. Friends told him people on social media were saying he was the one who hurt Edwin. The first few days after Edwin’s injury were difficult for Alexis. And Edwin, whose surgery initially was described as “season-ending,” is working on his own revival for 2023, too. You have to keep doing what you’re doing, do better this year.’”Īlexis has done just that, converting all 13 of his save opportunities with the Reds. You have to keep going, keep pitching, keep doing what you’re doing.’ I told him, ‘This is your second year in the big leagues. “I talked to him because he was saying it was his fault when I got hurt, because he was the one who first hugged me,” said Edwin, who in seven previous major-league seasons had never been on the injured list. And he knew that night, even while facing potential season-ending surgery, that Alexis needed him.
Edwin is involved in virtually every aspect of Alexis’ career, right down to picking his walk-out song. Edwin is Alexis’ closest advisor, his role model, his best friend. To Alexis, Edwin is more than simply an older brother. And they relived the pain, the shock of Edwin’s injury, the misfortune of a teammate so kind his nickname is “Sugar.” They relived their moment of joy, their emotional victory over the rival Dominican Republic to advance to the WBC quarterfinals, Edwin’s strikeouts of Ketel Marte, Jean Segura and Teoscar Hernández to close out the victory. That night, after Edwin returned from the hospital to the team hotel in Miami, a number of the Puerto Rican players gathered in his room. Only months before, Edwin had agreed to a guaranteed five-year, $102 million free-agent contract with the Mets. The injury, Maldonado said as he embraced Alexis in the dugout, was no one’s fault.
Martín Maldonado, who is from Naguabo, Puerto Rico, the same hometown as the Díazes, reassured Alexis after Edwin left the field in a wheelchair. Should the Mets struggle in the late innings at the start of the season, don’t be surprised if New York targets a closer at the trade deadline.Others, though, recall Alexis reacting differently, blaming only himself, saying he somehow had compromised Edwin while the players were jumping gleefully near the pitcher’s mound. While it’s by no means an ideal scenario, Steve Cohen’s offseason spending built depth in the bullpen will likely pay dividends now. New York could start the season with a closer-by-committee approach, but it’s clear there are options in house to take over for Diaz. Ottavino has served as closer with the Colorado Rockies and Red Sox, so he has the mentality to take on the role. The 37-year-old right-hander had just three saves last season as he served primarily as a setup man for Diaz. 176 xBA last season along with a 2.40 ERA and 1.162 WHIP in 63.2 innings.Īnother option could be Adam Ottavino, who hasn’t posted double-digit saves since logging 11 with the Boston Red Sox in 2021, the only season where he has posted more than 10 in a campaign. While Diaz used a mix of slider and fastball to become one of the league’s dominant closers last season, Robertson relies on an effective cutter, curveball, and slider, pitches that helped him post a. The 37-year-old right-hander has the ideal resumé to step into the role. Robertson picked up 20 saves last season between the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies and has 157 saves in his 14-year MLB career. It is very likely that David Robertson, signed this offseason by the Mets to a one-year, $10 million deal, will slide into the closer role in the absence of Diaz. With Edwin Diaz out, who becomes the closer for the New York Mets? The surgery will cost Diaz the entire season. The worst-case scenario has become a reality for Edwin Diaz and the New York Mets.ĮSPN’s Jeff Passan and multiple other sources have confirmed that Diaz will have to undergo surgery after tearing the patellar tendon in his right knee in a celebration following his ninth-inning dominance that helped Puerto Rico eliminate the Dominican Republic from the World Baseball Classic.
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