Miguel Angel Díaz (born November 28, 1994) is a Dominican

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

in the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

organization. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the San Diego Padres and

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

Career

Milwaukee Brewers

Díaz signed with the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

as an international free agent on December 1, 2011. He pitched in the Dominican Summer League as a 17- and 18-year old, and then spent the 2014 and 2015 seasons in the rookie-level Arizona League. In 2016, he worked in the Single–A

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

, starting 15 games and making 11 more appearances out of the bullpen with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

San Diego Padres

Díaz was selected by the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

with the first pick of the 2016 Rule 5 draft and was then traded to the San Diego Padres. Díaz made the Padres' 2017

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

roster and made his Major League debut on Opening Day. Díaz was initially used as a reliever, but transitioned into a starter role in June. While making his third start, Díaz suffered a forearm strain and ended up on the disabled list. He returned to the Padres in September, again pitching in relief. For the 2017 season, he totaled 33 strikeouts in 41 innings and a 7.34 ERA. In 2018, the Padres intended to develop Díaz as a starter, and he was optioned early in the spring to minor league camp. Díaz began the season with the Double-A

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in San Antonio, Texas, and are named for the Spanish missions around which the city was founded. ...

, where the Padres tried to stretch out his arm, and then was promoted to Triple-A

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

in mid-May. He was moved back to San Antonio in June after struggling with El Paso. The Padres called up Díaz for a single game at the beginning of July to help rest an over-extended bullpen. Díaz struck out four batters in one of the two scoreless innings he pitched, becoming only the second Padre to accomplish the feat. Díaz returned to the Major League club in mid-August and stayed with the team for the remainder of the season, working out of the bullpen. He finished with a 4.82 ERA, 30 strike-outs, and 12 walks in 18 innings at the big league level. In his 65 innings with San Antonio, he had a 2.35 ERA and 66 strike-outs versus 30 walks. After the season, Díaz was placed in the Arizona Fall League to improve his command and work out mechanical flaws. On December 2, 2019, Díaz was non-tendered and became a free agent. He re-signed with San Diego the next day on a minor league contract that included an invitation to Spring Training. Díaz did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On February 12, 2021, Díaz signed with the San Diego Padres organization on a minor league deal that included an invitation to Spring Training. On April 30, 2021, Díaz was selected to the active roster. He made his season debut on May 3 as the starting pitcher against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

. Díaz made 25 appearances for San Diego in 2021, posting a 3.64 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 42.0 innings of work. On October 30, Díaz was outrighted off of the 40-man roster and elected free agency on November 7.

Detroit Tigers

On March 12, 2022, Díaz signed a minor league contract with the

. Diaz spent most of 2022 playing for the Triple-A

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

, pitching in 58 games and posting a 4-5 record and 4.29 ERA with 69 strikeouts and 7 saves in 65.0 innings pitched. On September 29, Diaz's contract was selected by the Tigers. On November 15, Díaz was designated for assignment by the Tigers. On November 18, Díaz was non–tendered and became a free agent. He re-signed a minor league deal on November 29. In 49 games for Triple–A Toledo, he registered a 5.05 ERA with 73 strikeouts and 14 saves in 57.0 innings of work. On September 1, 2023, Díaz was selected to the major league roster. In 12 relief outings, he posted a strong 0.64 ERA with 16 strikeouts across 14 innings pitched. On March 28, 2024, Díaz was designated for assignment after failing to make Detroit's

roster.

Houston Astros

On April 4, 2024, Díaz was claimed off waivers by the

. He made one scoreless outing before being designated for assignment on April 8. On April 11, Díaz cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple–A Sugar Land Space Cowboys; however he subsequently rejected the assignment and elected free agency. He re–signed with the Astros on a minor league contract the next day. In 13 games for Triple–A Sugar Land, Díaz struggle to a 9.64 ERA with 10 strikeouts across 14 innings. He was released by the Astros organization on May 27.

Detroit Tigers (second stint)

On June 9, 2024, Díaz signed a minor league contract with the

organization.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diaz, Miguel 1994 births Living people Amarillo Sod Poodles players Arizona League Brewers players Arizona League Padres players Detroit Tigers players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Dominican Summer League Brewers players El Paso Chihuahuas players Houston Astros players Lake Elsinore Storm players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Baseball players from San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic Peoria Javelinas players San Antonio Missions players San Diego Padres players Sugar Land Space Cowboys players Toledo Mud Hens players Toros del Este players Wisconsin Timber Rattlers players