Player Data: Age: 27 (3/22/1994), B/T: R/R

Primary Stats: 63 G, 62.2 IP, 5-6 W/L record, 3.45 ERA, 1.053 WHIP, 89 K, 3.87 SO/BB

Advanced Stats: 117 ERA+. 34.6 K%, 8.9 BB%, 2.64 xERA, 2.48 FIP, 3.47 xFIP, 1.0 bWAR, 2.0 fWAR

2021 salary: $7 million

Grade: B-

2021 Review

In a season that saw so much go wrong for the team, especially in the second half, one of the brighter lights of the Mets’ 2021 campaign was whenever the music of Timmy Trumpets and Blasterjaxx echoed on the Citi Field loudspeaker. In what grew to be a fan-favorite spectacle throughout the season, Edwin Díaz‘s entrance into games was effective more often than not. That being said, his off days were truly heartbreaking, so a Díaz appearance was rarely without stress.

Despite his overall solid year (117 ERA+), the Mets weren’t just paying for a closer to be merely above average; they were hoping for a star, as Díaz was in Seattle, and for a while, earlier in his tenure with New York. But his tendency to collapse was evident early on in April. In just his second appearance of the year, Díaz allowed three hits and two runs to the Marlins, albeit in a non-save situation. But oftentimes, that was exactly the problem with him – when a non-save opportunity presented itself, he far too frequently made the game a lot more nail-biting than it should have been.

Yet he ended April with no blown saves and only one loss, putting up zeros on the scoreboard for the majority of his appearances in the month.

May was largely another successful month for Díaz, who allowed runs in just two of the 11 games he pitched in over the month. He allowed three runs in Philadelphia and two runs in Tampa Bay but otherwise was essentially flawless. No home runs or runs allowed at all defined the rest of his month. In fact, Díaz still did not have a blown save to his name.

The following month got off to an inauspicious start, as he blew the save in his first game of June against the Diamondbacks. In one inning, Díaz allowed three hits and a run, which led to an eventual Arizona win. The rest of the month saw mostly one-inning appearances allowing no runs, but in mid-June against the Nationals, Díaz entered the ninth in a scoreless game and took the loss. He allowed two hits, a walk, and an earned run while recording no outs at all.

July was arguably the most volatile month of Díaz’s season. The fact that he had two rough outings in his first two appearances, despite earning the save and win, respectively, was an eerie sign of rough times to come.

First, let’s get to those two outings in question. On July 5 against the Brewers, a game in which he allowed two hits, a walk, and a run resulted in Díaz’s 18th save of the season. Then on July 7 against those same Brewers, two walks and an unearned run gave him his third win of 2021.

But it wasn’t until he faced the Pittsburgh Pirates that Díaz would find himself in deep, deep water for the first time all year. On July 11, he allowed four hits, a walk, and two earned runs, all part of a complete letdown of an appearance that gave the Pirates a 6-5 win.

Somehow, it got even worse the following week. The Mets led 6-0 in the eighth inning at PNC Park, well on their way to a well-deserved, all-around team victory. But the bullpen was shaky and Díaz was called on to protect a slim lead. With the bases loaded and two outs, he gave up a walk-off grand slam on the first pitch he threw to Jacob Stallings. It was an unthinkable collapse that might have been one of the reasons the Mets would go on to quickly drop out of first place.

Díaz would go on to convert his final four save opportunities of the season, despite blowing two saves earlier in September in Washington. By season’s end, his numbers were really not awful, but the times he completely imploded stood out so much that it made his season seem worse than it was in actuality.

2022 Outlook

Díaz is again under contract in 2022 and should slot into the closer’s role as he has the past three seasons in New York. He may seem rather inconsistent and at times very unreliable, but for the most part, Díaz has gotten the job done in late, close games. With a (hopeful) improved offense backing the Mets’ pitching, that may mean Díaz is not always pitching in high-pressure situations – which is a good thing for all parties involved. I’d expect Díaz to notch 30-plus saves again in 2022, a number he has reached three times since 2017.