Good morning, Dodger fans.
Closer Edwin Díaz’s deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers is for three years and $69 million, sources tell ESPN. The Dodgers, who were targeting bullpen help this winter, got the best closer on the market, setting a new AAV record for relievers.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 9, 2025
The Dodgers’ interest in Edwin Diaz wasn’t a State secret, but it appears this deal came together rather quickly. Just a few weeks after the Mets signed Devin Williams to a 3-year, $51 million deal, the Dodgers countered by snagging Diaz away from the Mets.
Diaz, 32 in March, is widely considered the best closer in baseball. He’s coming off a 2025 season that saw him pitch to a 1.63 ERA, 2.28 FIP and post a 29.8 K-BB%.
With that much red in his Statcast profile, the numbers make sense and the Dodgers’ interest in him does as well.
Diaz is a true 2-pitch pitcher. He’s armed with a high-90s 4-seam fastball and a wipeout slider that’s Top 10 in MLB among relievers in whiff rate. He’s also good at keeping the ball in the yard despite not being the best at limiting opposing hitters’ ability to pull fly balls in the air against him. He excels at limiting hard contact, even if his 88.5 MPH average exit velocity against was his highest in since 2019. It was still below MLB average and his xBA, xSLG, and xwOBA are all in the Top 1 or 2% in MLB. That’s the kind of arm the Dodgers are signing.
He slots into the Dodgers’ bullpen as the unquestioned closer after their Tanner Scott gambit didn’t exactly pan out in the first year of his 4-year pact (though, Dodger brass is confident in a Scott bounce-back). And Diaz won’t just be a ninth-inning option for the Dodgers. He logged more than one inning 11 times in his 62 appearances.
Diaz was given the qualifying offer by the Mets, so there will be some draft and international bonus penalties with this deal.
With the Dodgers agreeing to a deal with Edwin Díaz, the Mets will receive a compensation pick after the 4th round, and LA will lose their 2nd- & 5th-highest selections, as well as $1 million from their int’l bonus pool.
More on the Draft order: https://t.co/O31y2g3dyd pic.twitter.com/Iz2pEgEoK1
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) December 9, 2025
Honestly, it’s worth it. The Dodgers’ World Series window is wide open, and adding top-tier talent should be the priority. It doesn’t get more top-tier than Diaz.
They’re trying to fix a leaky ‘pen. Upgrading to Diaz from Scott, Blake Treinen and Kirby Yates is a fantastic way to do just that.
