Ahead of the postseason, the mere thought of watching Edwin Diaz enter a game at Citi Field with “Narco” blaring through the speakers would give any Mets fan goosebumps. The closer has had a dominant season, and his entrance into games has become a huge event.
That wasn’t the case with New York down 4-0 to the Padres in Game 3 of the Wild Card series when Diaz was summoned in the eighth inning. This usually gets the crowd moving, but the only people who seemed to enjoy it were Padres fans:
4 carreras abajo, en juego de eliminación y viene Edwin Díaz…
Puede ser la última vez que escuchemos las trompetas en Citi Field en esta temporada ?. pic.twitter.com/vy3Rd7N4ay
— ESPN Béisbol ⚾️ (@ESPN_Beisbol) October 10, 2022
This is definitely an awkward situation. Diaz is coming into the game and this is the music he wants to hear. Does he have a backup for moments like this? Well, no — of course not. But since his entrance has made so many waves this year, it hits a little different with the Mets on the brink of being eliminated.
It didn’t help that Diaz allowed the two runners he inherited to score on a Juan Soto single down the third-base line.
The right-hander has put together one of the most dominant relief pitcher seasons in recent memory. He’s due to hit the free-agent market this winter, and there’s a chance he’ll return to New York in 2023 and beyond. But still, after a year where his entrance mostly made the Citi Field crowd go nuts, it’s tough to see the year potentially come to an end in this manner.
Matt Musico can be reached at matt.musico@xlmedia.com and you can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
