Díaz’s Return Marks New Life For Bullpen

Ten games sure felt like a whole season’s worth of baseball for Edwin Díaz and the Mets.

The club was sent on a rollercoaster ride to end June and start July, finishing the stretch 5-5, which included losing two games where the Mets were up by five runs.

Those five-run leads weren’t entirely the bullpen’s fault. Christian Scott allowed four runs to the Nationals and the Astros chipped away at Tylor Megill to eventually defeat the Mets 10-5 in extras. Still, if Díaz was healthy and the bullpen wasn’t asked to overwork, the Mets could have finished 7-3.

But it’s not healthy to dwell on what-ifs. Or what could have been. What’s more important is that the Mets survived the stretch and finished it exactly where they started. And that Díaz is back and reminded everyone of his value.

The righty entered Saturday’s game in a save situation, facing three daunting bats in Oneil Cruz, Rowdy Tellez, and Andrew McCutchen. Díaz struck Cruz with a 97-mile-per-hour fastball to start the inning, but recovered by blowing 99 past Tellez and inducing a game-ending double play off the bat of McCutchen.

Ball game over. And three-game losing streak over.

The win was massive, as the Mets inched closer toward .500 and gained ground in the wild card race as the Cardinals lost 14-6 to Nats. But the return of Díaz perhaps marked a much deeper win for Carlos Mendoza and David Stearns.

While Díaz served his suspension, Mendoza had to manage his pitchers in a unique and demanding way that wouldn’t survive a 162-game season. Starters were asked to pitch extra innings, relievers were asked to throw multiple innings or on consecutive days.

It worked at first and the Mets started their Díaz-less stretch 3-0 against the Yankees and Astros. But due to overwork and the absence of one of the league’s best closers, the Mets nosedived. The club finished the stretch 2-5, losing two games where they led by five runs and dropped the series opener to the Pirates 14-2.

It wasn’t pretty. And it put a burden on Mendoza and his staff. But Saturday gave a glimpse of what the 2024 bullpen could be. José Buttó pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings after David Peterson lasted 4 1/3, then Reed Garrett and Dedniel Núñez both were asked to only pitch one inning after. Which they both finished scoreless (albeit Garrett loading the bases and getting a friendly call from John Tumpane).

Nobody was overworked and Díaz saved the game for a Mets win. It was a textbook and how Stearns and Mendoza most likely envision the end of a Mets ballgame to go.

Moving forward, this “add” for the Mets could be season changing. The bullpen was the crux of the Mets struggles in May and was a massive reason they lost five games during this 10 game stretch. Díaz’s return marks a new life for the bullpen and could be the driving force that solidifies the Mets as buyers with the deadline looming on July 30.

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