Dodgers Hope To Repair Alexis Díaz and Bolster Bullpen

The Dodgers have had some spectacular successes in recent times with regards to buying pitchers who’ve struggled or failed to tell apart themselves elsewhere after which serving to them flourish. Tyler Anderson made his first All-Star group as a Dodger in 2022, at his fifth cease in seven seasons. Evan Phillips owned a 7.26 profession ERA earlier than being plucked off waivers in 2021, and has since turn into a dominant part-time nearer. Final summer season Michael Kopech went from getting knocked round with the White Sox to closing video games for the Dodgers inside three weeks of being traded. Anthony Banda, Ryan Brasier, Andrew Heaney… the record goes on. Beset by pitching accidents but once more, on Thursday, Los Angeles acquired Alexis Díaz from the Reds with a watch towards serving to him get well the shape that made him an All-Star simply two years in the past.

The 28-year-old Díaz, the youthful brother of Mets nearer Edwin Díaz by two and a half years, has regressed significantly since his standout rookie marketing campaign with the Reds in 2022. He spent the month of Might pitching for Cincinnati’s Triple-A Louisville affiliate after a left hamstring harm suffered in spring coaching compromised his mechanics and displaced him from nearer obligation. The deal — which went down the day earlier than the Dodgers introduced that Phillips will endure Tommy John surgical procedure subsequent week — despatched 2024 draft choose Mike Villani to the Reds.

The Reds drafted Díaz within the twelfth spherical in 2015 out of Juan Jose Maunez Excessive College in Naguabo, Puerto Rico. His climb to the majors was slowed by 2016 Tommy John surgical procedure and the coronavirus pandemic; he didn’t even attain Double-A till 2021. He broke camp with the Reds the next spring and allowed only one run and 7 hits in his first 17 1/3 innings — capped by his first profession save — whereas placing out 21. By late August, he was the first nearer, albeit on a group certain for 100 losses. He completed the yr with a 1.84 ERA, a 32.5% strikeout charge, and 10 saves in 63 2/3 innings, a efficiency that helped him place fifth within the NL Rookie of the Yr voting.

Díaz earned All-Star honors and saved 37 video games whereas posting a 3.07 ERA and three.52 FIP in 2023, however his regression continued as he did not tame a double-digit stroll charge. Final yr, his ERA ballooned to three.99 and his FIP to 4.57 whereas his strikeout charge dipped to 22.7%, although he nonetheless transformed 28 of 32 save possibilities.

Throughout pitchers fielding follow in late February, Díaz slipped and tweaked his left hamstring. Subsequently, he struggled throughout his restricted Cactus League motion whereas making an attempt to pitch earlier than he was totally wholesome. In late March, the Reds positioned him on the injured record as a result of left hamstring irritation, at which era supervisor Terry Francona mentioned, “He has some shifting elements [in his delivery], however his lead leg shouldn’t be the place it must be.” Permitting him to proceed pitching created “a number of considerations,” Francona continued, including, “That we’re sending him on the market, and he’s both going to get harm or he can’t pitch the way in which he must. It’s simply not honest.”

After a rocky rehab stint at Louisville, Díaz joined the Reds on April 15, however he struggled along with his management, strolling 5 and hitting two whereas permitting 4 homers and eight runs in six innings. After he gave up three of these homers and 5 runs in a single inning of labor on April 30 towards the Cardinals, the Reds optioned him again to Louisville. He’s walked eight in 8 2/2 innings since being demoted, and total has a 17.1% stroll charge and 1.32 homers per 9 in 13 2/3 innings of labor at Triple-A, all of which suggests his management issues haven’t abated.

The Dodgers haven’t introduced Díaz again to the majors but. As a substitute, they despatched him to Camelback Ranch, their Arizona spring advanced, to work with their participant efficiency teaching workers. “We really feel like we have now a chance to take a step again and concentrate on his supply and getting his physique shifting correctly once more,” mentioned normal supervisor Brandon Gomes. “He’s nonetheless displaying flashes of the elite reliever he was previously with the flexibility to dominate right-handed hitters however hasn’t been in a position to persistently repeat that model.”

The Dodgers won’t solely must get Díaz’s supply in working order once more, however they’ll additionally must counter the multiyear traits which have compromised his efficiency. He’s a two-pitch pitcher, with a four-seamer that’s receded from a mean of 95.7 mph right down to 93 this yr. Batters nonetheless didn’t do a lot along with his heater final yr (.196 AVG/.283 SLG), however his whiff charge on the pitch dropped from 30.6% to 23.7%. His slider hasn’t actually misplaced any velocity, persisting proper round 87.5 mph, however from 2022 to ’25, its horizontal motion decreased from a mean of 5.8 inches (glove facet) to 2.6 inches, whereas its induced vertical break elevated from 0.9 inches to five.8. With the altering form and reducing velocity differential relative to his fastball, batters hit .214 and slugged .384 towards his slider final yr, up from .153 AVG/.229 SLG, whereas his whiff charge eroded from 37.9% to 29.8%. Right here’s a breakdown of his chase and swinging strike charges on his two pitches:

Our two pitch modeling programs are fairly break up on the standard of Díaz’s stuff, although each view it as diminished relative to when he first broke in:

PitchingBot makes use of the 20-80 scouting scale, with 50 being common and each 10 factors representing one customary deviation. By that system’s reckoning, Díaz’s four-seamer and slider had been each plus-plus caliber when he was a rookie, however the former has dropped 10 factors over 4 seasons, and the latter by 20 factors, along with his total command falling by 11 factors. Stuff+, which makes use of a scale the place 100 is common and each 10 factors represents one customary deviations, views Díaz’s choices in his rookie yr as effectively above common however every thing since as under common. Previous good friend Eno Sarris explains:

When Alexis Díaz first got here up, his fastball had much less arm-side motion and was extra distinctive. The stuff mannequin appreciated that model higher. Might be so simple as discovering what he as soon as had in Los Angeles, greater than growing one thing fully new. pic.twitter.com/0nVBgsHUNZ

— Eno Sarris (@enosarris) Might 29, 2025

If the Dodgers can restore Díaz to working order, the transfer provides them a major leap on patching a bullpen that’s been labored exceptionally exhausting so far and been compromised by accidents. With starters Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and Roki Sasaki all sidelined by shoulder issues, and with Tony Gonsolin, Clayton Kershaw, and Dustin Might all getting back from surgical procedures, Dodgers starters have averaged a serious league-low 4.66 innings per begin; they’re one in every of 5 groups averaging fewer than 5 innings per flip (the Marlins, White Sox, Brewers, and Rockies are the others). Their bullpen has thrown a serious league-high 251 innings, however solely 13 2/3 have come from Kopech, Phillips, and Blake Treinen, the trio of high-leverage righties who had been so instrumental final yr in serving to the group to the NL’s greatest document and a World Sequence championship. All three are at present on the injured record, they usually’ve obtained loads of firm:

The Dodgers simply misplaced García, who’s second on the workers in aid innings (26) to the IL in a transfer retroactive to Thursday. García, Yates, whom they signed to a one-year, $13 million deal, and the at present wholesome (knock on wooden) Tanner Scott, whom they signed to a four-year, $72 million deal, all have ERAs of 4.34 or greater. Rookies Ben Casparius (a righty) and Jack Dreyer (a lefty) are nearly the one ones holding the bullpen collectively. Even with Kopech and Yates on the right track to return sooner or later inside the subsequent week, it’s not exhausting to grasp the Dodgers accelerating the tempo of their summer season procuring.

To get Díaz, the Dodgers gave up Villani, a 22-year-old righty whom they chose within the thirteenth spherical of final yr’s draft out of Lengthy Seaside State and signed for a $147,500 bonus. Listed at 6-foot-2, 210 kilos, Villani is a 35+ FV prospect who pitched within the Cape Cod League after his junior season however didn’t make his first skilled look till Might 22 of this one; he made two appearances for the Dodgers’ Arizona Complicated League squad after lacking the earlier six weeks as a result of an unspecified harm. His fastball sat 94-97 in these outings and grades as a plus, however his command is iffy, with grades of 30 current and 40 future. Extra from Eric Longenhagen, who simply added Villani to The Board:

Villani barely pitched throughout his freshman season at Santa Clara then transferred to Palomar School, adopted by Lengthy Seaside State. He solely labored 25 innings in aid as a junior however was closely scouted on Cape Cod between the top of the school season and the Draft. There he sat 94-95 and touched 97 with very inconsistent strikes and secondary stuff. Although each his 80-82 mph curveball and 86-89 mph changeup flashed bat-missing motion, so variable was their high quality that Villani labored along with his fastball 81% of the time… Villani can’t actually spin the baseball effectively and his breaking ball lives off his excessive slot and the pure depth it creates. He’s comparatively under-developed as a prospect and might need higher secondary stuff within the tank, however Villani is usually a developmental righty aid prospect with a modest ceiling.

If that sounds lots just like the proverbial lottery ticket, it’s as a result of the Reds considered Díaz much less as a current All-Star who nonetheless has three years of membership management remaining and extra as a participant whom they had been prone to non-tender. It’s shocking they gave up on him so rapidly, provided that All-Star look and the well-known title; it wasn’t so way back he was mentioned to be coveted by the Mets, each earlier than and after massive brother tore his patellar tendon within the World Baseball Traditional (the 2 had been teammates on Puerto Rico). He’s making solely $4.5 million, however the Reds have been adequate at growing pitchers in recent times that they apparently choose to pocket his $3 million-ish of remaining wage and hope to supply the following Díaz down the street.

Not all the Dodgers’ reclamation tasks have panned out — Noah Syndergaard, anybody? — nevertheless it’s not as if they gave up lots to get Díaz. In the event that they do repair him, he may very well be one in every of their high-leverage guys for awhile, however on the very least, the Dodgers hope he can merely give supervisor Dave Roberts one other wholesome possibility quickly.