New York Mets: solving the Edwin Diaz problem

The New York Mets have an Edwin Diaz problem. Should they send the struggling righty to Triple-A in an effort to solve his command issues?

As we all know, the New York Mets have been incredibly hot since the All-Star break. The Amazins’ have brought themselves back into the playoff race but they still have one issue that is not going away, what should the team do with Edwin Diaz?

Throughout his first 49 games in Queens, Edwin Diaz has not been as advertised. The righty has posted a 5.60 ERA and has blown five saves.

The Mets have been very patient with the young righty but their patience has clearly run short amid the team’s current thrust back into the playoff race. Mickey Callaway and company began by granting Diaz their vote of confidence as the righty continued to struggle.

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Their confidence has understandably wavered as Callaway has pivoted to relying on Seth Lugo in higher leverage situations. The New York Mets are going to need Edwin Diaz to figure it out if they are going to continue their charge towards the playoffs. Should the team think about sending their young righty down to see if he can pull himself together?

This is certainly a possibility as the New York Mets will be able to replace the struggling flame thrower with another arm. Personally, I do not think this is the best decision as this will be a huge hit to his confidence. Acquiring Edwin Diaz was a move for the long run, the Mets need him to see that he can be successful playing in New York City.

Diaz clearly still has his electric stuff (as he has averaged 14.6 K’s per nine innings), his command has just been elusive. Throughout the season, we have seen the righty struggle with a consistent command of his fastball and slider. This has resulted in a WHIP of 1.467 and high averages of 9.8 hits, 2.2 home runs, and 3.4 walks per nine innings pitched.

Since the firing of Dave Eiland in June, Mets’ pitchers have turned their seasons around under the tutelage of Phil Regan, Rickey Bones, and Jeremy Accardo. I believe that this trio is more than capable of reigning in Diaz’s electric stuff and the Mets seem to as well.

On Monday, Andy Martino of Metsblog.com reported that “the team remains committed to working with Diaz with the big club, and does not intend to send him down at this time.” Now, this opinion can change, but it is ultimately the right decision as an effective Diaz is an extremely valuable commodity.

Maybe the dark tunnel, which has been 2019, is nearing an end for Diaz?

The Mets will not know unless he shows that he is able to command his pitches on a big-league mound. Fellow hard-throwing reliever, Jeurys Familia, has struggled with his mechanics all season.

These struggles have culminated in three consecutive scoreless appearances, with his appearance on Sunday resulting in a one-two-three-inning where the righty struck out the side. In my opinion, Diaz has shown promise as of late. The righty just needs to avoid the gopher ball as he has allowed one in four out of his last six appearances. Other than those four home runs, Diaz has only allowed one hit. Consistency is the name of the game and who knows, maybe we will see the page turn for Diaz during the Mets upcoming series with the division-leading Atlanta Braves.

Will Edwin Diaz figure out his command issues before the end of the season? I cannot say for sure, but I remain optimistic and I believe that New York Mets fans should too. In the end, it is a shame that Diaz has to have these struggles during an extremely exciting stretch of Mets baseball.