Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
The Los Angeles Dodgers again find themselves without Edwin Díaz, who was placed on the 15-day injured list last week due to neck inflammation. He previously missed more than three months while recovering from surgery to remove loose bodies from his right elbow.
Díaz struggled mightily after returning from his first IL stint, allowing 16 hits and 11 runs over 7.2 innings while blowing three save opportunities in the process.
Díaz is expected to rejoin the Dodgers before the end of the season, but when he does, it won’t be as their closer. The three-time All-Star hopes to eventually work his way back into the role and regain the trust of Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.
“Well, we got a lot of season left,” Díaz said. “We are a playoff team, so my goal is to be ready and help this team in the playoffs. So I’m working on that. I know I will be back, so I’m really positive.”
Díaz wasn’t offended that Roberts removed him from the ninth-inning role and believes Tanner Scott is more than deserving of the opportunity after his resurgence this season.
“Yeah, I’m OK. I haven’t pitched good and Tanner Scott is doing a great job,” Díaz explained. “I’m really happy for him. So when I when I come back, I just want to help, do my job, help this team to win, and they make a decision after that.”
Díaz’s first season with the Dodgers has been nothing short of disappointing after signing a record-setting three-year, $69 million contract. In 16 appearances so far, he has gone 2-2 with an 11.85 ERA and 2.56 WHIP across 13.2 innings.
“It’s a little bit frustrating because I know that the pitcher I am,” Díaz began. “I know when I’m good, I can do really good things. So I’m working to come back to that form. The group of coaches here, they put in a lot of work with me together every single day. So my goal is come back and be ready to go and perform in the right way.”
Why has Edwin Díaz struggled with Dodgers?
Díaz attributed his trouble this year to having a lower arm angle than his career norm, and is focused on correcting it.
“Yeah, they showed me a couple videos from previous year. It’s just my arm angle is a little bit low. We are working now to get it higher and be more consistent in that position,” Díaz said.
“I think with a good arm angle, my fastball runs way better than I’m throwing right now. I’m throwing the ball side to side, so my slider is still getting flat in the middle. My fastball is running to the bat. So that’s why we are working now to get the angle back. Keep going and keep working.”
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