“Sugar” is now the new closer for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Edwin Diaz was officially introduced in front of local media Friday afternoon by the braintrust of Brandon Gomes and Andrew Friedman.
Friedman in particular spoke glowingly about his new weapon in the backend of the bullpen. He also illustrated that there comes a responsibility in being the closer of this ballclub — and that Diaz’s selflessness aligns wonderfully with the culture of the team.
“Yeah, I think it’s more the opportunity to to get Sugar and add him to our mix. I mean, for us it’s just we have a high bar to name someone the closer. You have to be one of the best, you have to be elite and dominant at what you do. Sugar is that. And I think just watching him compete over the years, seeing the selflessness in the postseason or in the last weekend of last year, I’ll come in the fourth inning, fifth inning, whenever the game is potentially on the line. And it fits in really well with our culture and the selflessness of a lot of our superstar players. So, so many boxes were checked in our mind, but again, just a very high bar to say this person is our closer and Sugar checks all those boxes.”
Friedman constantly referred to Diaz as “Sugar” throughout the presser. Where does that nickname officially come from?
Diaz got the nickname in high school because his friends believed he resembled the star pitcher Miguel “Sugar” Santos in the 2008 film, Sugar.
More news: Andrew Friedman Discusses Dodgers Spending Big on Bullpen
Echoing what Friedman said about clubhouse culture, “Sugar” admitted that this was an integral factor in signing with the Boys in Blue.
“Yeah, I heard great things about this clubhouse. I already have my brother [Alexis Diaz] play here. So, he told me great things about the Dodger clubhouse. They treat every single player like the same. And that’s something really nice. I know they have a lot of great players pitching from all over the world. And heard that they treat the young guys like they are the same guys, that’s something good because I think that’s how a winning clubhouse is.”
Photo Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Have you downloaded the new Dodgers Nation app yet? Click here for Apple Users and here for Android Users to be a part of the redesigned app to give fans everything they need, all in one place. Don’t miss out on live GameCast with play-by-play, news and analysis, Dodgers Nation podcasts and videos, all the stats you want and more!
