Why Edwin Daz still has hope of salvaging disaster debut Dodgers season

Ninth inning.Trumpets blaring.

Edwin Díaz trotting out of the bullpen to collect the final three outs of a game.It’s a scene the Dodgers dreamt about all winter, after signing the star closer to a $69 million contract in December.It’s become an all-too-rare occurrence since then, with the right-hander battling injuries and underperformance in what has been a nightmarish debut season.Yet, last Friday night, such a moment materialized again in Díaz’s return from the injured list –– helping set the stage for a crucial final week in which the right-hander will be battling for a place on the Dodgers’ postseason roster.“I gotta show them I’m part of that bullpen,” Díaz said.“I haven’t pitched [much] this year, and when I’ve been on the mound I’ve been struggling.

So right now I’m giving my 200% just to show them I will be in that roster spot … Just every time, when they give me the ball in any situation, I will do my job.”Granted, Friday’s outing wasn’t a save opportunity, with Díaz only pitching because the Dodgers held a comfortable six-run lead.Neither was his appearance in another rout of the San Francisco Giants on Saturday, with the Dodgers continuing to ease him back in lower-leverage situations.Still, at this point of the year, Díaz’s pair of scoreless innings were nonetheless signs of progress.“I liked everything,” manager Dave Roberts said.

“I liked his intensity.I liked the fastball velocity.

The slider was good.So it was just really good to kind of get him back in the mix.

That’s something to build on.”Over this final week, the Dodgers will need to see more such outings.If Díaz is to make their postseason roster, he can no longer afford any bouts of regression.“I just want to keep climbing the ladder,” Díaz said, “and finish the season strong.” The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.

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