Injured Mets closer Diaz set to miss MLB season
New York Mets closing relief pitcher Edwin Diaz suffered a torn right patellar tendon celebrating a World Baseball Classic victory and surgery will likely sideline him for the 2023 season. The Major League Baseball club said Thursday that Diaz had suffered a "full-thickness tear" in the right knee tendon and would undergo surgery Thursday. A typical timeline to recover from such surgery is eight months, Mets general manager Billy Eppler said, without stating a timeline for Diaz. The 28-year-old Puerto Rican right-hander was injured during a team celebration on Wednesday after he struck out the side in the ninth inning to complete Puerto Rico's 5-2 victory over the Dominican Republic to reach the World Baseball Classic quarter-finals. Last November, Diaz signed a five-year MLB contract worth US$102 million -- the richest deal ever for an MLB relief pitcher. He was named the 2022 MLB Reliever of the Year after an All-Star campaign that included 32 saves, a 1.31 earned-run average and 118 strikeouts over 62 innings. "Edwin Diaz is a great human being and a fierce competitor," Mets owner Steve Cohen tweeted. "All of us at the Mets are shaken but determined to sustain our quest for a great season. We wish Edwin a speedy recovery." The Mets are chasing their first World Series crown since 1986. (AFP)