Díaz expected to miss entire season after freak injury
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz has a torn patellar tendon and is expected to miss the entire season after hurting his right knee while celebrating a victory in the World Baseball Classic.
Mets general manager Billy Eppler said Díaz would undergo surgery Thursday. Without going into specifics, Eppler said a general timeline for recovery from this type of injury is about eight months.
The Mets signed Díaz to a 5-year, $102 million contract — the largest ever for a closer — after he produced a spectacular 2022 season. All player contracts are covered by insurance through the WBC that spans the length of time the player is out with an injury suffered during the tournament.
Díaz went 3-1 with a 1.31
ERA and 32 saves in 35 opportunities while striking out 118 batters in 62 innings last season. He made his second All-Star appearance and finished ninth in the Cy Young Award voting.
Díaz, who turns 29 on Wednesday, retired the side in order in the ninth inning of a 5-2 victory over the Dominican Republic that sent Puerto Rico to the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals. As Díaz and his teammates jumped together in the infield, the right-hander collapsed and reached for his right leg.
He was taken off the field in a wheelchair.
New York Mets fans began the year dreaming about a World Series closed out by Díaz.
For now, they’re facing a potential nightmare.
The way his teammates stood around him in shock didn’t look encouraging. The injury was exactly what big-league teams and their fans fear the most when their highpriced stars go play for their countries in the WBC.
No matter what, this setback was sure to set off spirited debate about whether the tournament, which started in 2006 and was held every three or four years until a cancellation in 2021, is worth it.
“Those things, they can happen to anybody at any given time,” said Los Angeles Dodgers star outfielder Mookie Betts, who was playing for the United States when Díaz was hurt.
“You can always try to place blame on the WBC, but that was just a freak accident that could happen to anyone at any given time,” he said.
Mets teammates Pete
Alonso and Jeff McNeil also were with the U.S. team in a game against Colombia when a coach told them about Díaz.
“It’s just really heartbreaking to hear about Edwin,” Alonso said after a 3-2 win in Phoenix.
“Every day you show up to the yard, there’s a possibility of getting hurt. There’s hazard in the job. Anyone can get hurt at any given time. Anything can happen,” he said. “That’s the risk we run playing baseball. We’re athletes and injuries are unfortunately part of the game.”
It’s true that injuries can happen anytime in baseball. Infielder Gavin Lux tore his knee in a recent exhibition game for the Dodgers and is out for the season. Los Angeles teammate Freddie Freeman hurt his hamstring this week playing for Canada.
Still, the intensity of many WBC games is what often scares MLB teams about seeing their players in this event.
“Obviously there’s risk involved,” three-time AL MVP Mike Trout of the Angels said after helping the U.S. win. “You’re still playing baseball, and it’s spring training.”
As famous for his trumpet-driven entrance music as his dominant pitching, Díaz was in tears and did not put any weight on his right leg as a coach and trainer helped him limp toward the dugout.
Díaz’s brother, Reds pitcher Alexis Díaz, was also crying as Edwin was put in a chair and wheeled away. Mets teammate and Puerto Rico shortstop Francisco Lindor stood nearby with his hands on his head.
“Nightmare scenario for Mets fans and the WBC,” tweeted longtime reliever Jerry Blevins.
“Edwin Díaz seems to have been really injured after celebrating a win. This is the big fears mlb players & teams have with participating in the Tournament.”
Díaz is critical to the Mets’ World Series aspirations. Without him, newcomer David Robertson probably would be next in line for the closer’s spot.
Puerto Rico manager Yadier Molina said Díaz underwent testing at the stadium.
“I was hugging our coaches in the dugout. Then when we looked up, Edwin was on the ground,” Molina said. “I didn’t know. I didn’t know how to act, I didn’t know how to — what to say. I mean, I didn’t know. It got me for a surprise.
“Like I said in the dugout, it sucks, sorry, but when you see a guy that works so hard like Edwin, I mean when you see him on the ground like that, I mean it just is sad.”
He’s become a sensation in New York for his pitching and his danceinducing entrance music that leads with a rousing trumpet riff. Díaz comes
out of the bullpen at Citi Field to “Narco” by Blasterjaxx and Timmy Trumpet. He even had trumpets painted onto his cleats for the WBC.
Díaz is hardly the first pro athlete injured during a rowdy celebration. Los Angeles Angels slugger Kendrys Morales broke his leg in 2010 taking a big leap onto home plate after hitting a gameending grand slam — manager Mike Scioscia subsequently outlawed bouncing scrums at home plate.
Chicago Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster broke a toe catching his foot in a dugout railing while rushing the field in 2009, and the Minnesota Twins’ Denny Hocking had his nose broken by overzealous teammates after his first walk-off home run in 2001. Perhaps most famously of all, Arizona Cardinals kicker Bill Gramatica ended his rookie season in 2001 by tearing his ACL jumping up and down after a field goal.
But those were games that counted for their teams in regular-season play. Díaz’s injury is sure to fuel those who say it’s a
bad idea for big-league teams to loan out players for international play.
The WBC tournament is being played as MLB players ramp up for the start of the season at the end of March. The WBC has rules in place — in addition to some request from MLB teams — to try and protect players, particularly pitchers, from getting injured.
Pitchers for all countries are limited to 65 pitches per outing in the first round. If a player throws more than 50 pitches in an outing, he can’t pitch for the next four days. If he throws more than 30, he can’t pitch the next day. Finally, if he throws on back-toback days, he must sit out the next day.
But few could have imagined Wednesday’s scene.
Puerto Rico center fielder Kiké Hernandez said the locker room was quiet after Diaz’s injury.
“It’s a certain point that its bigger than the game,” Hernandez said. “It’s very unfortunate that it happened. As excited as we were about the game and all that, that’s one of our brothers.”