Edwin Díaz’s Saturday rescue act came after another shaky ninth, and the Dodgers are making one thing clear: they want more fire from their closer.
Díaz coughed up his third save in eight chances for Los Angeles and his second straight against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but the inning did not end the way Friday’s did. A night after the Dodgers dropped a 3-2 lead in the ninth and watched the game end on a walk-off homer, Díaz was back on the mound with a 1-0 lead and immediately put himself in trouble. Back-to-back triples tied the game.
Then came the turn. With the winning run standing on third and nobody out, Díaz settled in and stopped Arizona from ending it. He got a lineout, then a popout, issued an intentional walk, and finished the frame with a strikeout to push the game into extra innings.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the difference was obvious once the pressure peaked.
“I think for me, it was just the intensity,” Roberts said about what changed for Díaz after the back-to-back triples. “I think you saw once they scored the run, man on third base, nobody out, you saw the intensity pick up.
“The stuff picked up, the fastball got better, the slider got better. Even talking to him after the game, that’s how we have to be from the first pitch. That was the first game I saw this year where he had some real intensity.”
Roberts also said he was surprised Díaz hadn’t shown that edge sooner, even as the right-hander has worked back from right elbow surgery to remove loose bodies and a roughly three-month absence.
“Yeah, I mean, I don’t know if it’s just kind of you want to be perfect, you’re trying to get your feet under you,” Roberts said. “He’s been in rehab mode a lot, but this is something I think can be a springboard for outings to come.”
The numbers have been rough. Díaz owns a 10.80 ERA in 10 innings, along with a 2.50 WHIP and 15 strikeouts. He has allowed at least one run in seven of his 12 appearances and multiple runs in three.
Before landing with the Dodgers, Díaz had built a reputation as one of baseball’s top relievers. Now Los Angeles needs him to get back to being effective if it wants any real shot at a deep postseason run.
Díaz said his problems have centered on the slider, though he didn’t frame it as a feel issue or a drop in stuff.
“I think I’m just trying to be perfect with that pitch, and it’s missing right over the middle. I’ve got to be better,” Díaz said.
He also made it clear he isn’t interested in leaning on the long layoff as an excuse. For him, the fix has to come fast.
“I’ve got to find it tonight or tomorrow when I come to the field,” Díaz said. “That’s my pitch.
I’ve got a good fastball, but my slider is my strikeout pitch. I’ve got to keep working.
Just got to do my job better.”
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