New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz was carried off a baseball field on March 16, 2023, with tears streaming down his face and his right patellar tendon in shreds after a celebration gone awry following Puerto Rico’s victory over the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.

A year later, he received a standing ovation at Port St. Lucie after throwing a perfect seventh inning in the Mets exhibition win over the Florida Marlins at Clover Park. What a difference a year makes.

“He came in and threw strikes,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Mr. Diaz’s outing on Sunday. “He made it look easy.”

Mr. Diaz looks healthy and in exceptional form less than two weeks before the season begins on March 28 against the Milwaukee Brewers. His fastball is crisp, his slider is nasty, and his presence electric. He has retired all six batters he has faced during the spring, including striking out the side on 14 pitches during his first appearance. 

The flamethrower looks ready to head a bullpen that will be relied upon heavily if the Mets are going to make anything of their season. Before his senseless injury, he had established himself as the game’s best closer, recording 32 saves in 2021 and again in 2022, when he made his second appearance in the All-Star Game. 

Losing him last year on the season’s eve set in motion a disappointing campaign for the Mets, who despite acquiring high-priced pitching talent like Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer were 36-46 and 18.5 games out of first place by the end of a horrid June. They finished 75-87, a record that cost manager Buck Showalter his job.

When Mr. Diaz made his first spring training appearance on March 11 at Clover Park against the Florida Marlins, trumpets blared “Narco” to signal his arrival. The music provided a reminder of the halcyon days of the 2022 season when Mr. Diaz was a dominant closer and the Mets made the playoffs.

“Three strikeouts in the first inning back was amazing,” Mr. Diaz told reporters after that game. “With the people screaming, I was just trying to control my emotions. I know I have to do my job even if it’s a spring training game because I treat it like it’s the regular season. I just tried to make my pitches and everything went really good.”

The Mets need things to go well for Mr. Diaz this season if the club is going to have any chance to make September meaningful. The Mets recorded just 34 saves as a team last year, which ranked second-to-last in the National League. The formula for success this year will be to win more close games, which means they will be leaning hard on their bullpen.

“If you have good defense and the relief pitching is pretty strong you’re going to be in a lot of games,” Mets owner Steve Cohen told reporters at Port St. Lucie on Sunday.

The Mets, who were off on Monday, will need Mr. Diaz to pitch on back-to-back days before the season starts to prepare for consistent duty during the regular season. “I’ll need to pitch two games in a row,” he said. “But right now my arm is feeling great.”

Mr. Diaz said the injury taught him how quickly life can change. He spent more time with family and friends while focusing on his rehab during stays at Puerto Rico, New York, and Port St. Lucie. He credited the practice put in on the back fields, away from the main stadium, for preparing him for his comeback.

 “It was a long year away from baseball activity,” Mr. Diaz told SNY. “I want to say ‘Thank you’ to all the trainers and the performance staff that helped me come back.”

Mr. Diaz, who turns 30 on Friday, began his big league career in 2016 with the Seattle Mariners. He set a career-high with 57 saves for the club in 2018. He appeared in 73 games that year and made 61 appearances when he notched 32 saves for the Mets in 2022.  

Whether the Mets will be competitive enough in 2024 for him to clear 60 appearances and have enough opportunities to reach more than 30 saves is questionable, but at least the right-hander appears ready for duty.

The rest of the Mets bullpen is still taking shape. Michael Tonkin made his case by pitching two scoreless innings against the Houston Astros on Saturday. He has yet to yield an earned run in six appearances this spring. Adam Ottavino is a late-inning reliever. Brooks Raley, who is a lefty, is also back to challenge left-handed hitters. 

A familiar face, Drew Smith, is hoping to avoid his pattern of strong starts and poor finishes. A lefty, Jake Diekman, could find a role along with Sean Reid-Foley, Jorge Lopez, and Yohan Ramirez, obtained from the Chicago White Sox in December.