In Dodgers return, Edwin Daz wows with fastball in successful save attempt

The Dodgers had waited three months to see Edwin Díaz back on the mound, and all year for him to look like himself.So on Wednesday night, when the trumpets began to blare and he came trotting out of the bullpen to begin the ninth inning, it almost felt like the trade deadline had come early.In the Dodgers’ 4-2 win over the Mariners, Díaz was not flawless in what marked his first appearance since April –– having been activated from the injured list pregame following a three-month absence recovering from an elbow procedure.He gave up a ground-rule double to Dominic Canzone with one out.Then he watched another double off the bat of Josh Naylor sail over Kyle Tucker’s glove in right field.Still, given a soft landing spot with a three-run lead in his first outing back, he limited the damage there, collecting his fifth save of the season and the first in what he hopes is a resurgent closing stretch to the year.Most encouragingly for Díaz on Wednesday, his fastball had renewed life, up more than a full tick from his early-season struggles at 96.9 mph.He showed no ill signs of the elbow injury that had sidelined him since April 19, either, when he underwent a procedure to have loose bodies removed from his elbow.That wasn’t even the best part, either.As Díaz was summoned for the ninth, his iconic entrance music –– “Narco” by the appropriately named Timmy Trumpet –– prompted a raucous standing ovation from a Dodger Stadium crowd that had been gifted Díaz bobbleheads on his serendipitous giveaway night.Most fans pulled out their phones to record.

One got more creative, holding a plastic beer bat to her lips to imitate the trumpeting tune.It was the kind of scene that, for so much of the summer, the Dodgers had missed.The kind of result that, as the stretch run commences, they hope to get again and again out of their $69 million offseason signing....