Diaz, the Mariners' projected closer, earned a save by firing 1.1 innings of scoreless ball in Team Puerto Rico's 3-1 World Baseball Classic victory over defending champion Team Dominican Republic on Tuesday.
Diaz came on with two out and a man on in the eighth and got out of the inning when Nelson Cruz was gunned down trying to steal second. His work in the ninth was considerably impressive, considering he got Adrian Beltre swinging and Welington Castillo on an infield pop-up before nailing down the save by getting new Mariners teammate Jean Segura looking. Diaz is expected to have ample opportunity to rack up saves after successfully converting 18 of 21 such opportunities as a rookie in 2016.