San Diego Padres relief pitcher Miguel Diaz (37) points to the outfield a Houston Astros shortstop Carlos Correa (1) hits a pop fly in the bottom of the twelfth inning during the baseball game between the San Diego Padres and Houston Astros on May 29, 2021 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
According to Houston Astros relief pitcher Miguel Diaz’s Major League Baseball player profile, he signed a minor league contract with the organization on Friday and will be assigned to Triple-A Sugar Land.
Matthew Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reported on April 11 that Diaz elected free agency on Thursday after he was designated for assignment on April 8.
Diaz was sent outright to Triple-A Sugar Land and rejected being sent down on April 11 before he elected free agency. Diaz, 29, was born in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic, and has played seven seasons in Major League Baseball with the San Diego Padres from 2017-2019 and 2021 and the Detroit Tigers from 2022-23.
The Astros claimed Diaz off of waivers from the Tigers on April 4.
During spring training with Detroit, Diaz appeared in eight games and posted a 1-0 record with a 5.40 ERA, recording one save, throwing 8.1 innings, allowing ten hits, five earned runs, five walks, and ten strikeouts before he was designated for assignment on March 28.
The right-hander pitched in one game for the 2024 season with Houston against the Texas Rangers on the road on April 5, threw one inning, and did not allow a hit or an earned run prior to him electing free agency on April 11.
Last season, Diaz played between Detroit and Triple-A Toledo. With Toledo, Diaz went 2-4 and made 49 appearances, posting a 5.05 ERA, recording 14 saves, throwing 57 innings, allowing 54 hits, 32 earned runs, three home runs, 26 walks, 73 strikeouts, and a 1.404 WHIP.
In Detroit, Diaz started in three and appeared in 12 games with a 0.64 ERA and a 1-0 record, throwing 14 innings allowing eight hits, one earned run, five walks, 16 strikeouts, and a 0.929 WHIP.
During the 2021 season, Diaz split his time between San Diego and Triple-A El Paso. He played in 25 games, started in two with San Diego, and posted a 3-1 record with a 3.64 ERA, throwing 42 innings, allowing 31 hits, 17 earned runs, eight home runs, 19 walks, 46 strikeouts, and a 1.190 WHIP.
With El-Paso, Diaz started in two games and made 14 appearances, posting a 7.47 ERA and a 0-4 record. He pitched 15.2 innings, allowing 22 hits, 13 earned runs, four home runs, 14 walks, 21 strikeouts, and a 2.298 WHIP before he elected free agency on November 7, 2021.
In Diaz’s seven seasons in MLB, he has a lifetime record of 6-2 with a 4.81 ERA in 88 appearances and eight starts, recording one save, throwing 127.1 innings, allowing 109 hits, 68 earned runs, 22 home runs, 64 walks, 132 strikeouts, and a 1.359 WHIP.
According to Baseball Savant, Diaz’s fastball is 91 mph with 16.2 inches of drop and 6.8 inches of break. His slider breaks at 84.9 mph and has 35.2 inches of drop and 5.4 inches of break, and his changeup creases at 85.7 mph and has 34.9 inches of drop and 16.4 inches of break.
