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Some things are worth the wait and, while it has taken a lot longer than expected, the Mets are now finally getting what they thought they would from Edwin Diaz.

Acquired by the Mets from the Seattle Mariners as part of that now infamous Jarred Kelenic trade – with Robinson Cano also coming to Queens – Diaz stunk the place out in his first year as a Met in 2019 as he pitched to a 5.59 ERA while allowing 36 runs, 15 home runs and blew seven saves.

Given that the whole lopsided trade was made to ensure the Mets got their hands on an elite closer in Diaz, the 2019 season could not have turned out any worse for both franchise and player.

However, the righty rebounded in 2020 with a 1.75 ERA during the shortened season, striking out 50 on his way to making six saves.

He continued pitching to a high level in 2021 with 32 saves and 89 strikeouts in 62 2/3 innings pitched and, while he still gave Mets fans the odd heart attack, the dominant and reliable pitcher that carved out his reputation in Seattle appeared to be well and truly back.

This year has been at a different level, though.

With everything seemingly coming up rosy for the Mets through 33 plus games of 2022, Diaz has kept in line with that trend thanks to a remarkable start in which he has showed signs of returning to the elite reliever he was in Seattle.

He allowed just one hit in a scoreless ninth inning against the Nationals on Tuesday, striking out one on his way to securing his seventh strikeout of the year.

It was just the latest in what has now become a long line of impressive outings on the mound, with Diaz as locked in and lethal as he has ever been during his time as a Met.

He’s established his filthy slider as one of the most dangerous and effective pitches in all of baseball, allowing just a .103 BA, .207 SLG and .188 wOBA with the pitch while generating a 55.4 percent whiff rate.

In total, Diaz has thrown his slider 50.5 percent of the time and his fastball 49.5 percent, and the results speak for themselves.

Through 14 games this year, Diaz has a 1.93 ERA and 0.86 WHIP with 24 strikeouts in 14 innings pitched to go along with seven saves.

He’s also given up just seven hits across 14 innings and he’s allowed just two runs in his last 11 appearances. Plus, his 15.2 K/9 leads all pitchers who have pitched a minimum of 13 innings.

Not only that, but the way the veteran now attacks the zone and the swagger in which he’s pitching gives hope to the fact that the Mets finally have the stud closer they’ve long craved.

The type of closer that can contribute to a World Series winning team.

Furthermore, if you widen the lens and look at the bigger picture, you can appreciate why this year isn’t just a mirage, rather than a tantalizing taste of what has been promised and teased for the past couple of seasons.

If you combine 2020 and 2021 together, Diaz had a 2.95 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, 139 strikeouts in 88 1/3 innings, while allowing just five homers.

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Focusing again on just this season and the underlying metrics also tell an impressive story with Diaz in the 100th percentile in strikeout rate, xERA, whiff percentage, xBA, xSLG, and xwOBA. He’s also in the 99th percentile in chase rate and fastball velocity, the 98th percentile in hard hit percentage, the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 92nd percentile in barrel percentage.

As the great Larry David would say; pretty, pretty, pretty good.

Again, the eye test is also very important when assessing a player and the way in which Diaz pitched to close out the historic no-hitter against the Phillies coupled with the composure he showed to close out the Mets’ crazy comeback win in Philadelphia, proves that he is pitching at the very peak of his powers right now.

Every legit contender – and that’s what the Mets hope to be this year and beyond – need a lockdown closer and Diaz is proving that he’s the guy in Queens, with his lockdown arm a weapon that certainly puts a smile on manager Buck Showalter‘s face.

“Knowing you can do certain things, and Edwin has a chance to make it hold up and matter,” Showalter said. “It’s a hard job; other teams are good and do it every night. Some of these teams make you realize how lucky we are to have Edwin.

“So far, he has answered about every bell.”

And it is clear that Diaz has already earned the trust of Showalter, who revealed on Wednesday that he will use the pitcher in multiple innings of games this season.

“I’m not gonna give in yet to the temptation of using him in the eighth, but that will happen at some point this year,” Showalter said.

With Diaz’s resurgence coupled with Cano being DFA’d by the Mets last week, there are plenty who are revisiting that big trade all over again, especially with Kelenic slashing .141./.221/.294, with some now suggesting that the Mets won that trade.

While it is still too early to crown a decisive winner, especially given that Kelenic has a very high ceiling and is likely to emerge from this slump soon, the biggest positive and point of focus for Mets fans should be that they finally appear to have their coveted stud lockdown closer in Diaz, who is off to an elite start in 2022 and he appears to only be getting better.

We had to wait a while, but it is proving oh so worth it.