Edwin Díaz got the final outs of the Dodgers' 4-1 win over the Braves on Wednesday, closing out a series clinch that sends Los Angeles to a third straight NLCS. Good for him. It still doesn't mean he's fixed.
I get why everyone wants to call this settled. The Dodgers are moving on, the champagne's out, and the guy who spent chunks of this season on the injured list just nailed down the biggest outs of the month. That's a real moment, and nobody should take it from him. But one strong outing in an elimination game against Atlanta doesn't erase a season where he landed on the IL more than once, including a stretch with neck inflammation and another with loose bodies in his elbow that was supposed to keep him out for months. A guy doesn't out-pitch that kind of year with a single slammed door.
Maybe the doubts were about health all along, and a healthy Díaz closing out a series on the road is exactly the proof you'd want. Fine. Then prove it again. The Braves series is over. The NLCS puts him in front of better lineups, higher stakes, and more chances for the old symptoms to resurface. Do this against that kind of competition and I'll say it myself: he's back. Doing it once against Atlanta in a clinching game is a good sign. Nothing more.
Dave Roberts will keep handing him the ninth inning because the alternative is admitting he doesn't trust his own closer in October, and that's its own kind of risk. Díaz earned the ball back. He hasn't earned the benefit of the doubt. Those are different things, and the Dodgers' bullpen management for the rest of this run depends on everyone remembering that.
Los Angeles is in the NLCS for a third consecutive year, a genuine accomplishment for this roster. None of it changes what we actually know about Díaz: he looked great for one night. The job now is to see if he can do it again when it's harder. The hard part isn't over.
