Colorado Rockies Rundown: Dickerson, Diaz, Arenado, CarGo, And Matzek

Aug 28, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Colorado Rockies relief pitcher J. Diaz (47) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the seventh inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Diaz dominates out of the bullpen

(via MLB.com)

There’s a very nice write-up on MLB.com about Jairo Diaz, and how he’s figured out things for the Colorado Rockies over the last few months (in the big leagues and in AAA) after a tough start to the season — his first with a new organization after being traded from the Los Angeles Angels over the winter.

The most telling quote in the piece is from Walt Weiss, who said of Diaz’s very good fastball and slider:

"“I think the hitters were getting a good look at the ball early on, and he tweaked some things mechanically to try to hide the ball a little longer. A guy throwing that hard with a slider that hard, you shouldn’t get hit hard — and he was early in the season. So I think a lot of it was just due to the fact that hitters were seeing the ball a long time. “He was a guy that kind of spun off, so they tried to get his direction better going to home plate and not spinning off. When you spin off, you open up sooner, and therefore, hitters see the ball longer. So I think it’s all tied together.”"

[ Related: Colorado Rockies Tinder… Jairo Diaz is hot! ]

Diaz has insane stuff; a high-80s slider goes along with a fastball that can routinely touch 100 mph. Even in an era of power pitchers, very, very few people can match Diaz’s velocity and hard stuff out of the bullpen. Honestly, I think the Colorado Rockies absolutely stole him from the Angels (they got him in exchange for Josh Rutledge, for goodness’ sake!).

A power pitcher with Diaz’s stuff comes around rarely; if he can figure out how to consistently do what he’s done so far in the month of September, he’ll have a nice little career in Denver.

Next: Tyler Matzek figures it all out