More Like Edlose Diaz

It is hard to keep track of the number of free-agent signings and trades made by the Dodgers that have allegedly broken baseball. When Tarik Skubal lands in the dugout at the trade deadline and starts the freakout all over again, it’s easy to move on from the last set of acquisitions that was raising qualms and inviting guffaws. But let the record show, before it’s too late, that Edwin Diaz was at one point one of those baseball-breaking signings.

The Dodgers signed Diaz this past offseason to a three-year, $69 million deal. Diaz was the best reliever on the market, coming off a season with the Mets in which he saved 28 games and posted a 1.63 ERA. The signing was a source of anguish for parity-obsessed baseball fans not necessarily because of the size of the contract, but because of how indulgent it felt from the Dodgers’ perspective. The Dodgers front office would have certainly argued that their bullpen needed reinforcement, but throwing $69 million at Diaz felt a little like watching a kid whose bike tire went flat solve the problem by buying 12 more bikes.

As it turns out, any fretting about how Diaz’s arrival in Los Angeles would put the Dodgers even further out of reach was a big waste of time. Diaz experienced some struggles through his first seven appearances of the season, and then had surgery to remove loose bodies from his throwing elbow. That procedure kept him out for three months, and ever since returning at the end of July he has been pure, unmitigated ass.