Courtesy Gary SouthShore RailCats Media Relations
Gary, Ind. — 2017 Gary SouthShore RailCats left-handed pitcher Carlos Diaz was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the second round (29th overall) of the Triple-A Phase of the MLB Rule 5 Draft on Thursday. Diaz became the 31st player in franchise history to sign with an MLB Affiliate after the Miami Marlins purchased Diaz’s contract on August 7th.
Diaz went 2-1 with four saves, four holds and a 3.83 ERA in 21 games (three starts) for the RailCats before signing with the Miami Marlins. The southpaw led all Gary pitchers with a .164 opponents batting average and struck out 62 batters while walking just 17 in 42.1 innings. In 18 relief appearances, Diaz was 2-0 with a 2.30 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 31.1 innings.
Diaz didn’t allow a run in five appearances between the Gulf Coast League Marlins and the Greensboro Grasshoppers (Class-A). In 6.1 innings, Diaz allowed just three hits and three walks while striking out seven batters and holding opposing hitters to a .130 batting average.
Diaz signed with the Cleveland Indians as an international free agent at the age of 20 in 2012 and began his professional baseball career that summer with the Dominican Summer League Indians. In his first season of pro ball, Diaz went 2-5 with a 1.59 ERA in 12 games (11 starts). In 51 innings, Diaz struck out 49 hitters and yielded just 28 hits and 25 walks.
In 2013, Diaz went 1-2 with a 7.62 ERA in 11 relief appearances for the Arizona League Indians. The left-hander struck out 15 batters in 13 innings and held opposing hitters to a .255 batting average.
