New York Mets Closer Edwin Diaz's World Baseball Classic Limitations
Mets closer Edwin Diaz is playing for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, but there will be some ground rules regarding his usage.
As Diaz told Mike Puma of The New York Post, he will not pitch on consecutive days. The decision was made based off where Diaz is in his buildup for the season.
“We don’t throw back-to-back here until late March,” said Diaz, who is leaving on Monday to join Team Puerto Rico in Miami. “I understand that and am OK with that. We are on the same page and ready to go.”
Diaz went on to tell Puma that he is willing to pitch every other day for Puerto Rico if needed.
Diaz's younger brother, Alexis, will also be on the team. Alexis Diaz served primarily as a setup man for the Cincinnati Reds last season, posting a dazzling 1.84 ERA in 59 appearances.
This will be the first time that Edwin (29) and Alexis (26) will have ever played on the same team together.
And Edwin is dreaming of the opportunity to close out a game for Puerto Rico after his brother pitches the eighth inning.
“I think that will happen,” Edwin Diaz said. “We have got three or four closers and all those guys won’t pitch the same day, so me and [Alexis] can pitch the same day and the other two closers can go the other day. That would be really good.”
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