Dodgers stay mysterious as Edwin Diaz questions swirl

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts fielded questions on the potential availability of Edwin Diaz after Sunday's 5-2 loss against the Texas Rangers.

Diaz, who signed a three-year, $69 million contract, is pitching rather lightly as the Dodgers noted his drop in velocity. He blew up the save opportunity in Friday's game, giving up three earned runs in the ninth before the Dodgers won it in the final inning.

Roberts kept him out of Saturday's game and though the right opportunity didn't come along to use Diaz in Sunday's game, the Dodgers manager kept it a secret regarding his availability. When asked if he would have used Diaz in a potential save situation, Roberts declined to reveal.

Dave Roberts just said had it been a save situation he doesn’t know if Edwin Diaz would have been available. Said he is gonna keep that one to himself

This could be interpreted in different ways and one of them could be that Roberts is unsure about Diaz's use in crunch situations. The dip in velocity is really drawing concern, and it seems the Dodgers are not so sure about the closer at the moment.

More: Dodgers' Edwin Diaz clears the air on potential injury, attributes velocity dip to past trend

Edwin Diaz's dip in velocity is significant concern 

For a closer, velocity is everything, as more often than not it's their primary asset to get big on hitters. Edwin Diaz has become a big name, thanks in large part to his ability to throw hard.

For someone who has thrown harder than 97 mph every season on a four-seam pitch, a drop in almost 2 mph is, of course, a big concern. Diaz averaged 95.5 mph on his nine four-seam fastballs in Friday's blown save opportunity. Dave Roberts acknowledged the drop and mentioned that the support staff is watching the closer closely.

“Just talking to the pitching guys, looking at the velocity and some of the things he’s dealt with in the past, it’s a day-to-day thing,” manager Dave Roberts told reporters on Sunday. “I’m going to see how he feels in catch play and talk to the trainers and pitching guys, see where we go and make a decision from there.

“I’m confident right now, because everything I hear is he feels fine. For me, you hear it, you want to completely trust it, but you’re also looking at the gun and making sure. We’re treading lightly, and giving him the benefit of the doubt, and still watching.”

Diaz has already said that he is experiencing no discomfort in his arm, eliminating the possibility of a mechanical issue. Now, it's up to the Dodgers trainers to understand what's going wrong and get the pitcher back to his usual speed.

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