A week before the Wild Card game, it seemed to many that Yandy Diaz’s return from the injured list was being hastened by the Rays to a point of perhaps being risky. Surely they wouldn’t put his health on the line just for a chance to use his bat, but still, were they sure he was actually ready to play?
On Wednesday afternoon the team released their Wild Card lineup, and not only was Diaz starting the game, he was hitting lead off. It was implausible that a man who hadn’t played in a game since July, and hadn’t seen any substantial play since his activation, should be used in such an incredibly high leverage situation.