1st-time All-Star Díaz has a presence beyond his years

CINCINNATI -- Pressure? Reds closer Alexis Díaz embraces it. Tough spots and high stakes? Give him more. Díaz welcomes it.

Although he's only a second-year reliever in the big leagues, Díaz is already an All-Star in 2023 because he's made locking down games feel nearly automatic for the surprise contenders of Cincinnati. Veteran first baseman Joey Votto has taken to calling his 26-year-old teammate "La Machina," which means the machine.

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“He’s been so important for this club. We would be nowhere without him, truly," Votto said. "He doesn’t complain. He doesn’t make anything about himself. But he’s steady, dominant when he comes in. He’s gotten out of trouble when the occasion calls for it. The guy has been spectacular day in and day out.”

One of Díaz's earlier tests this season came at San Diego on May 2. With the automatic runner on in the 10th inning, he walked his first batter to put runners on first and second base. That left him to face one of the most feared lineup trios in the game -- Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado and Juan Soto.

Díaz threw Tatis two sliders and a fastball to strike him out on three pitches. Machado flied out and Soto, after being up in a 2-1 count, got a backdoor slider on the outside corner for a called strike three that secured the Reds’ 2-1 victory.

No fear, no intimidation.

“He’s a star. That’s what stars do," Votto said.

In 41 appearances, Díaz is 3-1 with a 2.03 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. He has recorded 26 saves in 27 chances. His streak of 27 consecutive saves -- dating back to 2022 -- ended on June 30 during a 7-5 11-inning win over the Padres, when he blew the save in the top of the ninth inning. It was the longest active streak in the Major Leagues.

"For me, it's just being aggressive and keeping that same aggressiveness when I'm going up there," Díaz said through translator Jorge Merlos. "Those things are going to happen. Runs will score, but you just have to keep having a positive mentality and staying aggressive in the zone, and those things will happen and we'll be able to get out of the situation."

In 2022, Díaz was in big league camp at Spring Training for the first time. He wasn't viewed as a prospect and was best known as the younger brother of Mets All-Star closer Edwin Díaz.

Although he had only reached Double-A in 2021, Díaz impressed with a fastball that got high swing-and-miss rates, along with a plus slider. He made the team out of camp, skipping Triple-A.

In 59 appearances last season, Díaz led Cincinnati with seven wins and 10 saves out of 14 attempts while posting a 1.84 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP. He went from pitching in low-leverage situations to increasingly getting more responsibilities in the later innings.

Entering this season, the Reds weren't expected to contend as a rebuilding club. But they've emerged as legitimate contenders in the National League Central race after surging over the past month. Díaz had to grow quickly as a closer, especially since he was needed often during the team’s 12-game winning streak.

"He’s incredible. He carries himself like a veteran," Reds reliever Buck Farmer said. "It’s super cool to sit there and watch that. Even when he gets in jams, he can escape and slow the game and get out of stuff. Not a whole lot of guys can do that at his age."

Díaz was used a lot of consecutive days, and he pitched in seven of the last 10 games in June and a stretch of 12 of 18 when Cincinnati began its win streak. That's how indispensable he became for a team loaded with young players and rookies.

"This is great experience, and Alexis is in that category," manager David Bell said. "I don’t see that ever changing for Alexis. He’s always going to see that he has to keep improving and find ways to get better. I just think for guys like that, it brings out the best as pitchers and players. He’s at the top of the list being one of those guys.”

Having an innate ability to thrive under pressure certainly helps develop an elite closer quickly.

"No matter what, your back is against the wall, you have the ability to trust yourself, trust your stuff," Bell said. "In the end, once you let it go, you don’t know for sure what’s going to happen. To that point, if you can really believe in what you’re doing and are convicted, that’s what Alexis is able to do.”