PORT STREET LUCIE — There’s no special reason why the Mets went from 100 wins in 2022 to 75 wins last season.
But if you’re looking for a starting point where everything didn’t end well, it was 50 weeks ago, when Edwin Diaz tore his patella tendon while celebrating Team Puerto Rico’s victory in the World Baseball Classic. Ta.
Most obviously, the Mets lost arguably their best reliever of the season. But there was also a chain reaction, as the elite closer has an impact beyond the 60 or so innings he pitches.
David Robertson will be the closer, Adam Ottavino will be the primary setup man, and so on. “Our plan was Diaz and D-Rob. [Robertson] To close the game, just shorten your pen and force it to run. [different] He plays a role,” pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said.
There’s also the confidence an elite closer gives a team, including confidence that a blown save on Tuesday, for example, won’t affect the pitcher, or how the team feels about the pitcher if needed. Also included. I’m going to the game on Wednesday.
And it also affects the other person. “We’re playing shorter games,” Cardinals manager Oli Marmol said. “Nothing has changed since then. [Josh] Hader was in our department. [NL Central] With the Brewers. I wasn’t playing a nine-inning game. Of course you want him to turn the game around, but it’s difficult. That’s why elite athletes are elite athletes. ”
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said: Why are you thinking of using a pinch hitter sooner rather than waiting until the 9th inning when it probably won’t be an issue? ”
Or so said Mets bench coach John Gibbons, who twice managed the Blue Jays. [Narco] And then comes the most dominant man in the game. The opposing coach wouldn’t want to see that. ”
The Mets are excited to have it back in their sights. Diaz took live batting practice on Friday. The Mets will consider whether to have him pitch in his next minor league backfield game early next week or have him appear in his first MLB spring game just a few weeks before his 30th birthday on March 22. ing.
And how is he doing so far?
“When you look at his life, he’s a monster,” new bullpenmate Jake Diekman said. “He throws a slider that doesn’t get hit. I don’t know what his heater metrics are, but it has to be top notch.”
This is just based on batting practice. That’s why the Mets have high hopes for Diaz’s full return. Last time, he struck out 50.2% of the batters he faced, recorded an ERA of 1.31, and although he gave up 3 runs in 43 1/3 innings, he completed the season by converting 22 out of 22 save chances, and finished the season with City. The field was transformed into a league game. party when he entered. His greatest accomplishment was his extremely rare rise from pariah to darling in New York, a navigation that influenced the Mets to agree to the largest relief pitching contract in history ($102 million over five years). gave.
The difference in the Mets’ pen with and without him in the first year of his contract was clear. In 2022, the Mets’ relief pitchers posted a combined 3.55 ERA and ranked 10th in FanGraphs’ “Replacements with More Than Wins.” Last season, he had an ERA of 4.45, ranking 29th out of 30 teams.
Hefner believes the presence of such a high-performance security blanket in the bottom of the ninth helped elevate the standing of those standing in front of Diaz in 2022, especially by providing a defined role. He said he is doing so. Therefore, his absence was counterproductive.
Relief pitchers can be inconsistent, but to put it in perspective, the best current Mets bullpen finished in FanGraphs relief WAR in 2023 was 98th (Brooks Lally). There will be at least some inflexibility, as the Penns don’t have much ability to select relief pitchers in the minors. And starting pitcher Kodai Senga, who is likely to provide defensive innings, is not expected to return until May due to a shoulder injury.
Therefore, Diaz’s ability to almost certainly return in the ninth inning could allow his pen mates to line up more comfortably in front of him, as his absence affected the slump in the league standings, leading him from 75 wins to contention. It feels like it is the center of the Mets, who are emerging as a team. 100.
“That means you don’t have to think about an inning,” Diekman said. “It’s not just us two or three wondering who’s going to finish this game. I feel like if we can get our starters we can go all the way to No. 5, so that definitely helps. [innings], then it’s up to us to get the sixth, seventh, eighth, and then it’s the trumpet player’s cue. ”
