Puerto Rico eliminated the rival Dominican Republic from the World Baseball Classic on Wednesday night in Miami, but their joy was immediately tabled when charismatic Mets closer Edwin Díaz injured his right knee during the celebration.
Díaz, who entered to the trumpet trills of “Narco” as he does at Citi Field, struck out the side to finish off a 5-2 victory that sent Puerto Rico into the tournament quarterfinals. Thumping his chest as he walked off the mound, Díaz was met by teammates on the field. At some point after they swarmed around him, the group hugging and jumping, Díaz went to the ground and began grabbing his right leg.
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Edwin Diaz appears to have suffered an injury during Puerto Rico's celebration pic.twitter.com/G9Md6SBrEj
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 16, 2023
Teammates began to call for trainers, with the apparent seriousness of the injury bringing Alexis Díaz, Edwin’s younger brother and a fellow pitcher on the team, to tears.
A pair of trainers and pitching coach Ricky Bones attempted to carry Edwin Díaz off the field, with the pitcher immediately reacting in pain. He was ultimately helped to the dugout, then put in a wheelchair and taken into the clubhouse area.
The Mets announced Díaz will undergo imaging tomorrow and would offer another update “when appropriate.”
Díaz made his second career All-Star team last season for the Mets, and was immediately rewarded with a five-year, $102 million contract extension — the largest ever to a closer — to begin a significant New York spending spree. He converted 32 of 35 saves last season, fanning 118 in 62 regular-season innings.
"As excited as we were about the game and all that, that's one of our brothers"
— SNY (@SNYtv) March 16, 2023
Kiké Hernández talks about the emotions of team Puerto Rico after Edwin Díaz's injury: pic.twitter.com/V3wlhqYu3h