That's what he was drafted as in the third round back in 2012. After all, that's what he'd been ever since switching from outfield to pitcher as a 15-year-old in Puerto Rico. Half the room thought Diaz was a starter. Closers let you know who they are, and Edwin let us know pretty quickly." As he sat there staring at the large video screen, Dipoto posed a question to the group: What exactly is he? "You can't make a closer. Not well enough to tell whether it'd be a mistake to trade him away. In the couple days since arriving in Nashville for baseball's annual winter meetings, Dipoto - a notorious wheeler and dealer who'd taken the Seattle job that September - had been getting hammered with trade offers, many of which involved the name Edwin Diaz.ĭipoto was familiar with the lanky righty, having scouted him with Anaheim ahead of the 2012 draft, but he didn't know him as well as he wanted to. In December of 2015, at a little past three in the morning, the former Angels general manager found himself seated at a long table inside an Opryland suite, surrounded by a dozen other Mariners execs. THEY SAY THAT nothing good happens after midnight, but don't try telling that to Dipoto. After making his MLB debut last year, Diaz tallied his 50th strikeout faster than any pitcher since the 19th Century. Of all the moves GM Jerry Dipoto made this offseason, the boldest one very well might be entrusting the back end of his bullpen to a 22-year-old kid without a proper walkout song. More importantly for the Mariners, he's being counted on to help them win their first division title in 16 years. Twelve months later, he's one of MLB's most dominant relievers, the obvious choice to be the closer on a stacked Puerto Rico squad that's expected to challenge for WBC glory. This time last year, he was a prospect with the Seattle Mariners who'd barely been above Single-A and didn't get an invite to big-league camp. Meanwhile, Edwin Diaz goes about his business, running sprints in the outfield and spitting sunflower seeds, as if nothing has happened.īeing impervious to chaos isn't new for Diaz, whose presence on the Puerto Rican national team is borderline shocking. Despite the scorching Scottsdale sun, one guy pulls the hood of his sweatshirt over his head and, for good measure, throws his glove on top of that. In shallow left field, several players hit the ground and lay flat on their stomachs.
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