Dave Roberts isn’t making a change at the back end of the Dodgers’ bullpen, even with Edwin Diaz scuffling through a rough 2026 season.
Diaz has spent much of the year working back from elbow surgery, and the results on the mound have been ugly. Through 12 appearances, the right-hander has a 10.50 ERA and has converted five saves in eight chances. Since returning, that number has climbed even higher, with Diaz posting an 11.25 ERA over four innings across five outings.
The latest chapter came over the weekend, when Diaz served up a walk-off home run to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday and then blew another save in a one-run game on Saturday before barely escaping another walk-off threat.
Still, Roberts made it clear he’s sticking with his expensive closer.
“Yeah, I’m going to go to him,” Roberts said in regards to his ninth-inning option moving forward. “What’s the other alternative? That’s the problem.”
Roberts said his thinking is tied directly to how he wants to handle the postseason.
“I think I’ve always been consistent with this,” Roberts added. “If you look at how you’re going to use guys in the postseason - in my opinion - if we can’t trust Edwin Diaz in the postseason, then we’re going to have big problems.
So I have to give him every opportunity to get comfortable, get back, cut his teeth, dust the rust off - whatever way you want to look at it - in that role. I have to look at it that way.”
While Diaz was sidelined, left-hander Tanner Scott handled plenty of the ninth-inning work. Scott is available if the Dodgers need another option, but Roberts said the decision to keep running Diaz out there is about more than just the box score.
“That’s part of my calculus,” Roberts said. “Because at the end of the day, there’s a psyche component to the closer coming in … and that player believing my manager, my team believes in me. That’s a part of it.
“That’s where people just don’t understand because you can’t quantify that. It’s not tangible. But it’s a real feeling that I don’t want to chip away at.”
Scott knows the drill. He went through his own struggles last season in his first year with the Dodgers, but he has bounced back in 2026, putting up a 2.31 ERA in 50 appearances.
For now, the job stays with Diaz, and the Dodgers are betting he can sort it out. With another World Series run in mind, the margin for error is shrinking fast.
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