After rocky 1st year with LA, Díaz enters October in Dodgers' circle of trust

LOS ANGELES -- Even after Edwin Díaz blew three saves in the span of four games in August, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts felt that he could not deviate from using his closer in save situations at that point in time.

"Give me another option," Roberts said multiple times after the third blown save in that sequence.

Out of necessity, Roberts had to begin turning to other options when Díaz went back on the injured list on Aug. 18, dealing with neck inflammation after having surgery to remove loose bodies from his right elbow in April.

Less than two months after the ninth inning was shaping up to be fraught for the second straight postseason, the Dodgers find themselves flush with options they trust to close out games -- Díaz among them.

Roberts named Tanner Scott as the leverage arm he is most likely to call on in save situations this postseason, also mentioning Roki Sasaki, Evan Phillips and Díaz as viable options. The Dodgers may be unlikely to have a set closer this October, but they have several arms they trust to get the job done.

"I feel very comfortable with any of those guys closing out the game," Roberts said before Friday's workout on the eve of NL Division Series Game 1 against the Braves Saturday at Dodger Stadium.

Díaz may have signed a three-year, $69 million deal with the Dodgers this past offseason, but as recently as two weeks ago, he was pitching to prove he was deserving of a spot in the postseason bullpen. Through his first 16 appearances for L.A., the right-hander gave up 25 hits, struck out 19 against 10 walks and recorded an 11.85 ERA (18 earned runs in 13 2/3 innings).

Concerns grew about Díaz when he continued to struggle while on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City in September. After a particularly bad outing on Sept. 13 in which he was charged with five earned runs while recording just two outs, he sat down with the Triple-A pitching coaches, who identified an adjustment to make with his hips.

Díaz described the adjustment as lifting his front hip and going to the plate with intention, which helped sync up the mechanics of his throw. He tried out the tweak in a bullpen session before tossing a scoreless inning in his final rehab outing. Díaz returned to the Dodgers and was unscored upon in his final five outings, striking out nine and allowing just one hit and one walk.

"Right now, I'm trying just to do my job," Díaz said. "I just want to put [up] zeros when they give me the ball. I'm ready to pitch every day. I just want them to keep trusting me and keep giving me the ball to show them I'm ready for the postseason."

Not only do the Dodgers believe Díaz is ready for the postseason, they appear to trust him with the game on the line, even though he did not pitch in high leverage after returning from the IL.

“I don't know if we could have asked much more out of Edwin," general manager Brandon Gomes said. "I think it was like a 50-plus percent strikeout rate when he came back. Felt like each outing was more and more sharp and looking more like himself. … We know that he has pitched in the hottest of hot games in the past and in any role, especially in the postseason."

The last time the trumpets blared over the Dodger Stadium speakers to herald the ninth inning was August, but it may only be a matter of time before they announce Díaz's return to save situations.