Francisco Lindor's look as Edwin Díaz writhed in pain after closing out Puerto Rico's win-or-go-home victory over the Dominican Republic said it all.
Not only did the face of Puerto Rican baseball know that the closer for his country's World Baseball Classic team had just suffered a major injury, but you could tell by Lindor's reaction that he knew the New York Mets season -- and his friend's career -- had just been altered.
"I never knew I loved Edwin so much," Lindor said to Mike Puma of The New York Post. "I couldn't stop crying."
As it turned out, Díaz tore his right patellar tendon. He had surgery on his right knee Thursday. While baseball's most dominant closer reportedly hasn't given up hope that he'll return in 2023, all indications are that Díaz won't pitch for the Mets this upcoming MLB season.
For the time being, veteran David Robertson -- who signed a one-year/$10 million deal with the Mets this past offseason -- will likely get the first shot to close in Díaz's absence. Robertson has 157 career saves, so you could do worse as a fallback option.
But in a division that features the 2021 World Series Champion Atlanta Braves and 2022 National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies, if Robertson blows two or three saves that Díaz wouldn't have, it could very well change the outcome of the NL East.
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