Heading into Friday's home series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz had his name in headlines for reasons that had little to do with the fact that he's been arguably the most dominant relief pitcher in all of MLB this season.
Diaz's "Narco" walkout song created by Blasterjaxx and Timmy Trumpet has gone viral on multiple occasions this summer, and one fan recently announced his plan to use it as his wedding reception entrance theme. The official MLB website dove into how and why Diaz went back to a tune he first used as a member of the Seattle Mariners, and WFAN, the flagship radio home of the New York Yankees, even got in on the joke this week:
Joe is officially BACK.
— WFAN Sports Radio (@WFAN660) August 11, 2022
pic.twitter.com/6qZcOUkC2q
To WFAN's credit, Joe Benigno is a massive Mets fan.
On Friday morning, WFAN radio personality Gregg Giannotti wondered if the gimmick has jumped the shark ahead of the fall months.
"Is the Edwin Diaz entrance song now played out?" Giannotti asked during a segment, per Ryan Chichester of Audacy. "Everybody’s using it now though, for everything. We even used it here for Joe Benigno’s comeback song."
Meanwhile, former NFL quarterback and WFAN co-host Boomer Esiason likened Diaz's use of "Narco" to how Yankees legend Mariano Rivera had "Enter Sandman" blast over the loudspeakers as he headed toward the mound during his career.
"It wasn’t used like this, though," Giannotti responded. "It was a long time ago, social media wasn’t a thing…it’s everywhere. It’s being used in weddings now. Every video has got this song behind it. I just don’t want it to be [played out]. It’s a special thing."
As Charles Curtis of For The Win noted, the #EdwinDiazChallenge has taken social-media outlets by storm. Perhaps Giannotti is right, after all.
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