Mets closer Edwin Diaz has had a couple of rough outings recently, raising questions on whether or not the team should pursue a closer, such as Cubs’ Craig Kimbrel, ahead of the MLB trade deadline on July 30.
But Mets GM Zack Scott does not seem to think that will be the case.
Scott joined Audacy’s “Big Time Baseball” podcast with Jon Heyman and Cody Decker to discuss Diaz and the Mets’ trade deadline approach.
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"I think Edwin Diaz is a really good closer for us," Scott said. "I know he's struggled in his last few outings but I still believe in him, the stuff's still there. There's been some execution issues recently but I still have a lot of confidence in him and I think there's other guys there as well, you know Seth Lugo and [Jeurys] Familia and [Aaron] Loup, that have done a really good job of contributing. So, I don't necessarily think it has to be a closer for us to add to our bullpen. I'm just looking for good quality arms that can help us in high leverage [situations]."
That could mean adding another starting pitcher to a rotation that already consists of Jacob deGrom, Taijuan Walker and Marcus Stroman (although deGrom is currently on the 10-day IL with forearm tightness).
"That's definitely a focus as of today, that's our top priority and has been for a while," Scott said. "I think we've had three really good, consistently good, starting pitchers who have, for the most part, been healthy ... I always say I do subscribe to that old adage that you can never have enough pitching and I do think in the seasons in my experience that have fallen apart, that's been the main reason they've fallen apart."
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