Mets' Edwin Diaz feels ready, hopes he's same pitcher he was in 2022
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Nearly a year later, Edwin Diaz is ready to go — almost.
He estimated Monday that, as a pitcher, he feels about the way he usually does at the start of spring training. But as a player who missed last season because of a major right knee injury suffered in March, he still has work to do to get into game shape.
“We got some progress to make about my rehab, but pitching-wise, I feel ready to go right now,” he said.
Diaz explained that he hasn’t begun defensive drills, including fielding ground balls and covering first base. Those are the same holdups the Mets had when they decided against bringing him back for a cameo late last season.
When Diaz started working out at Clover Park on Monday, the Mets requested that media not take video of his light agility and warm-up exercises. The training staff considered removing the media from that section of the facility or moving Diaz’s workout before ultimately proceeding as planned.
Diaz said he hopes to be the “same guy” he was in 2022, when he had a 1.31 ERA (and went on to sign a five-year, $102 million contract to stay with the Mets). President of baseball operations David Stearns said the Mets have to expect some rust and a readjustment period.
“I know my body, I know how I have to attack the hitters, how to make my pitches,” Diaz said. “I got a good idea of what I have to do to be successful.”
Stearns said: “Twenty twenty-two is a really high bar for anyone; 2022 was a historic level of production for a major-league pitcher. But I would expect Edwin, based on his health and who he is as a person and his determination, to be a very good major-league closer for us.”
Rest assured, Diaz plans to stick with his signature trumpet entrance music this season.
“Oh, yeah, 100%,” he said. “If I change ‘Narco,’ I think I will get in trouble with the fans. I will keep using ‘Narco.’ ”
Extra bases
The Mets signed outfielder Ben Gamel to a minor-league contract and invited him to major-league spring training. Gamel, 31, has played parts of eight years in the majors, including 2019-20 with Stearns’ Brewers. He is a career .252 hitter with a .716 OPS . . . Non-roster righthander Kyle Crick has a strained calf and will miss at least most of spring training, Stearns said . . . The Mets can move injured players to the 60-day injured list beginning Wednesday. By waiting until then to finalize reliever Shintaro Fujinami’s contract, they can avoid cutting a player from the 40-man roster because moving, say, Ronny Mauricio to the IL will create a spot.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
