Edwin Diaz Isn’t Getting the Job Done in Los Angeles

History is repeating itself in Los Angeles: the Dodgers' top reliever just isn't getting the job done, and a starting pitcher may be called upon to close out games in the upcoming playoffs.

In 2025, despite winning the World Series, the California team had to turn to Roki Sasaki to do the job usually assigned to someone else—namely, becoming their go-to guy in the late innings.

Speaking of trust, confidence in Edwin Diaz is seriously crumbling as the pitcher—who was lured to Los Angeles with a three-year, $69 million contract—is failing to deliver.

Yesterday, the 32-year-old Puerto Rican earned his second win of 2026, but he still allowed one earned run and two hits to the Arizona Diamondbacks in one inning of work. His earned run average this season stands at 10.80. He has appeared in only 12 games and recorded five saves.

As a multimillionaire athlete, he isn't earning his bosses' trust right now, and they need to consider a Plan B if his situation doesn't improve. Japan's Sasaki skillfully got the job done in 2025, and that scenario could play out again in the upcoming playoffs.

The Dodgers have no shortage of resources, and they'll once again have to dig deep into their roster to play the right card. It turns out that the 24-year-old Japanese pitcher, who made 20 starts in 2026, has what it takes to transition into a late-game reliever and succeed.

It's worth noting that by acquiring ace Tarik Skubal at the trade deadline, the Dodgers are not messing around; they leveraged their strong farm system to secure the best player available at the time, and they didn't pay all that much to significantly improve their roster. Obviously, they're once again the heavy favorites to win a third consecutive title—much to the chagrin of many baseball fans around the world.

Edwin Diaz is currently making the Dodgers' front office look bad, but they've been through this before and won't beat around the bush when it comes to addressing an identified weakness. Sasaki would be their go-to option in the event of repeated failures by Diaz between now and the start of next season.

The Dodgers' 2-1 win over the Diamondbacks snapped a seven-game losing streak. It was Shohei Ohtani—him again—who drove his teammate Kyle Tucker home with a single early in the tenth inning. Jack Dreyer secured his first win of 2026 for his team.

As the starting pitcher, Yoshinobu Yamamoto (11-7) once again did his job, holding the Diamondbacks scoreless through five and two-thirds innings. He wasn't involved in the decision, but he kept his team in the game on the road, allowing them to pull off a last-minute victory. The loss did not knock the Dbacks out of the best second-place spot in the National League.

The Dodgers' record in 2026 now stands at 70 wins and 47 losses.

Created by humans, assisted by AI.