Video: Mariners’ Edwin Diaz breaks down his devastating slider
Aug 22, 2016, 9:39 AM
The Mariners inserted Edwin Diaz as the team’s closer in part because of his power fastball that sometimes reached 101 mph. But what has made the 22-year-old so consistently difficult to hit has been the development of a devastating slider.
The Mariners called up Diaz in June from Double-A Jackson, where earlier this season he began his conversion from starter to reliever. Despite a pair of close calls in the ninth inning last week, the rookie is 9-for-9 in save opportunities, with a 2.31 ERA in 35 innings pitched. He broke a club record for striking out 11 straight batters earlier this season and his 16.7 strikeouts per nine innings is tops in the MLB for hurlers with at least 20-innings pitched.
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Shannon Drayer wrote in July how then-teammate Joaquin Benoit and the pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. helped Diaz alter his grip to better unleash the potential of his secondary pitch. ROOT Sports released a video Sunday detailing Diaz’s success on the mound.
“This slider gave me a lot of confidence because I can throw it in any count,” Diaz said in the video. “It can be 3-0 and I can throw it. With two-strikes, I can throw it and deliver. I can do whatever I want with my slider now.”
Stottlemyre agreed that confidence has played a big role in Diaz’s development as a pitcher.
“You’ve seen him fall behind hitters with his fastball; he’s able to get back into a count with his slider,” Stottlemyre said. “For a guy that throws 100 mph, it’s pretty special. The other thing that makes the slider so good is he gets guys in the swing mode with his fastball, and he throws enough fastball(s) for strikes so we’ve told him it doesn’t have to be a nasty slider all the time, just something you can get in the zone.”