Zach Buchanan

zbuchanan@enquirer.com

Joey Votto didn’t like Jumbo Diaz the first time they encountered each other.

Both were in the minor leagues for the final game of the 2012 season, Votto on rehab assignment after knee surgery and Diaz as a reliever in the Pittsburgh system. Diaz – who weighed 350 pounds at the time, but is now down to 278 – got a chance to bat and reached second on Votto’s two-base throwing error.

Then, in a moment that went viral across baseball websites, Diaz stole third. A single brought him home, his teammates excitedly greeting him.

Votto was steamed.

“Like we all are, I’m a little bit of a head case on the field and was furious,” Votto said.

That tune has changed since. Diaz signed with the Reds as a minor-league free agent after that season and quickly became one of the most beloved guys in the clubhouse. Votto got to see up close the work Diaz put in toward reaching the big leagues, and the smile he carried across his face as he did it.

Diaz debuted in the majors in 2014 as a 30-year-old rookie, and has found pockets of success each of the two seasons. Becoming an established big-leaguer is a goal, and his upward climb continues.

Not many have persevered for as long.

“Those are the stories that I really appreciate the most,” Votto said. “Those are the guys that for the most part really do give it their all and are willing to have their hearts broken. Despite everything saying they won’t do it, they still achieve their dreams.”

Late bloomer

Diaz is approaching largely uncharted territory when it comes to pitchers who debuted in the majors after turning 30. There have only been 36 to do so since 2000, and 23 of them came to Major League Baseball from professional leagues in other countries.

“I got lucky,” Diaz said. “Not many guys are called up to the big leagues when they’re 30. I’m one of those guys.”

Just getting this far required hard work and patience. The Reds are his fifth organization. He’s been released five times since signing as an amateur free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2001, and has spent parts of five season in Triple-A, on the cusp of the majors.

He finally got his shot in 2014 when Cincinnati summoned him to the majors. Reds catcher Tucker Barnhart was with Triple-A Louisville when Diaz got called up. His teammates were overjoyed, but Barnhart remembers Diaz’s reaction being muted.

Only later did he realize Diaz was keeping his cool so as not to show up everyone else on the team waiting to get the same call.

“He’s a humble guy,” Barnhart said. “When you sit back and really think about it, that reaction of not really reacting was right. It was cool to see.”

Diaz pitched to a respectable 3.38 ERA in 34 2/3 innings that season, over the course of which he dropped 70 pounds. (He’s now listed at 278).

He made his first Opening Day roster in 2015, but struggled to the tune of a 6.65 ERA in the first two months.

The Reds sent him back to Triple-A.

Climbing back up

Diaz spent a month back in Louisville, where he worked with current pitching coach Mark Riggins, who at the time was serving as the organization’s minor-league pitching coordinator.

Diaz always had the stuff, including a fastball that flirted with 100 mph, but Riggins helped the hard-throwing right-hander learn how to focus.

Diaz was called back up a month later and posted a 2.65 ERA the rest of the way.

“In the first half, I didn’t start good. Every time I pitched, I was in my head, ‘If things go wrong, I get sent down,’ ’’ Diaz said. “I had too much pressure on me, and I didn’t pitch that comfortably.”

That pressure isn’t gone yet. While the bullpen competition is wide-open – closer J.J. Hoover is the only lock to make the 25-man roster – Diaz’s recent success only gives him the slightest of advantages.

Manager Bryan Price said the 6-foot-4 hurler will still have to prove himself over spring to guarantee a spot.

Diaz expects no less. He certainly didn’t last this long by coasting. He also knows he has a lot of people rooting for him.

“Many people love me on the team,” Diaz said. “I’m happy for that. I try to be a good teammate – talk with everybody, have fun with everybody. That makes me so happy.”