The struggling Edwin Diaz was placed on the 15-day IL Wednesday with a right shoulder impingement, another blow to an already reeling bullpen.
Diaz said he felt the discomfort on Sunday, following his most recent outing, when he pitched poorly again in another Mets loss.
He initially thought it was normal soreness, but it lingered until Wednesday, which is when he alerted the training staff.
The Mets placed Edwin Diaz on the injured list with a shoulder injury. Getty Images
An ultrasound test showed no damage and both Diaz and Carlos Mendoza expressed optimism that Diaz would not be out long, but Diaz also said he hasn’t dealt with shoulder issues in the past.
He also insisted the current injury did not play a role in his recent lack of performance, as he was yanked from the closer role and continued to pitch poorly.
Over his last five appearances, Diaz has blown three saves, giving up 10 hits, three walks and eight earned runs over 4 ¹/₃ innings.
He last pitched Saturday, when he blew yet another save in a loss to the Giants.
The 30-year-old missed all of last season after suffering a torn patellar tendon in his knee during the World Baseball Classic.
His return to the bullpen was expected to provide a boost to a unit that was undermanned a year ago, but after a strong first month of the season, Diaz has been subpar.
He is expected to be shut down from throwing for several days, with hopes of being ready to go when he’s eligible.
On Tuesday, David Stearns, president of baseball operations, said he had no concerns about Diaz.
Mets closer Edwin Diaz has a 5.40 ERA this year after missing all of last season with a torn patellar tendon in his right knee. Rhona Wise-USA TODAY Sports“I think Edwin’s a really good pitcher, an elite-level pitcher, who’s going through a rough patch,” Stearns said. “And I expect him to come out of it and bounce back just fine.”
But like just about everything else this season at Citi Field, that didn’t pan out.
Josh Walker was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to fill Diaz’s spot on the roster. Walker had just been optioned to make room for Wednesday’s starter, David Peterson.
Brooks Raley is already gone for the season due to elbow surgery and Drew Smith is working his way back from shoulder inflammation.
The Mets so far haven’t gotten much of a return on the five-year, $102 million investment they made in Diaz following his outstanding 2022 season, when he had 32 saves and 118 strikeouts in 62 innings.
He didn’t pitch last season before getting off to a promising start to 2024.
In his first 10 appearances, Diaz gave up just one earned run — and four hits — in 9 ²/₃ innings.
But in his next 10 outings, Diaz was knocked around for 11 earned runs on 14 hits.
