Closers Edwin Díaz of the Mets and Emmanuel Clase of the Guardians went about their jobs a bit differently in 2022.
Díaz racked up strikeouts at a record rate. Clase pounded the strike zone to get quick outs. But one thing they had in common -- other than routinely hitting triple digits on the radar gun -- was their late-game dominance.
Major League Baseball’s highest relief honors were bestowed upon Díaz and Clase on Tuesday. Díaz is the 2022 recipient of the Trevor Hoffman National League Reliever of the Year Award, and Clase is the winner of the Mariano Rivera American League Reliever of the Year Award.
Díaz, who won the AL version of the award in 2018 with the Mariners, joins Craig Kimbrel as the only players to win the Reliever of the Year Award in each league. The awards have been presented since 2014, when they replaced MLB’s “Delivery Man of the Year Award,” which had been presented to one winner across MLB from 2005-13.
