Diaz hasn’t Focused on making pitches as he

PORT ST. LUCIE — If the Mets want Edwin Diaz to be their fulltime closer this season, they haven't informed him about it. After throwing a simulation game on the back fields at the Mets spring training facility, Diaz said Thursday that he needs to keep working on his pitches in camp. His mindset going into the year is that he can pitch in the ninth inning.

But Mets brass has yet to officially tell Diaz that he should think of himself as the closer.

“I haven't talked to the manager about that,” Diaz said. “I'm just trying to do my job to demonstrate I can get outs. If they make the decision to give me the ninth inning, I will feel happy about that.”

He threw nearly 20 pitches during Thursday's simulation game that included matchups against Mets prospects Andres Gimenez and Ronny Mauricio. Diaz faced four batters, gave up a walk and didn't hold back on his heater.

The right-hander suffered through a rough outing in his Grapefruit League debut last week against the Astros (allowing two earned runs on three hits with a strikeout), but he rebounded for a scoreless fourth inning against the Nationals in his second appearance of spring. Diaz said — regardless of pitching in a simulation or exhibition game — he's focused on feeling confident about his pitches rather than the potential anxiety of pitching in front of a crowd.

The 25-year-old is facing enormous pressure to perform well in 2020 following his disappointing debut year with the Mets. If Diaz fluctuates between strong and shaky outings in spring, it's possible manager Luis Rojas will opt to remove him from closer duty before the season begins.

Rojas views his bullpen depth as a good problem to have, and said it's possible the Mets may have a closer by committee on Opening Day.

“His stuff is electric. He's in a good place,” Rojas said on Diaz's performance so far in spring. The manager said he has not yet spoken to his players about their regular-season roles. “We're gonna keep watching him pitch and his progression like everyone else in spring.”

Seth Lugo represents a