DUNEDIN, Fla. — As Elias Diaz advanced through the Pirates' farm system, the progress reports sent to Clint Hurdle described a promising young catcher who had an elite throwing arm but struggled with the nuances of the position.
He had yet to learn how to effectively call the game from behind the plate, as well as finer details such as reading swings. His athleticism and mighty right arm were enough to earn accolades. However, management was waiting for him to show he could command a pitching staff.
It took nearly eight years, a frustrating injury-filled season and a stern meeting upon arriving in America, but the 27-year-old proved late last season there is no longer a question if he can catch in the major leagues. Entering his first season as the Pirates' backup catcher, Diaz's development as a catcher began long before his audition with the club in 2017.
"This is something I've been working towards for several years," Diaz, who threw out a runner in the Pirates' 5-0 win over the Blue Jays at Dunedin Stadium on Sunday, told DKPittsburghSports.com. "I'm really excited. This has always been my passion. Now I have to give it everything I've got."
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Diaz wanted to be a catcher soon after he first picked up a baseball as a 3-year-old in Maraicabo, Venezuela. It was the position his older brother, Emison Soto, played, and Diaz became exceptional. As a teenager, his arm impressed major league scouts. He had the athleticism to become elite. And there was the raw power. He loved to show off his work at the plate. He spent countless hours hitting in the batting cage at the baseball academy in nearby Valencia.
In his mind, he needed to impress scouts with his bat, not his defense.
Those skills caught the attention of the Pirates' Latin American scouting director at the time, Rene Gayo, who along with Rodolfo Petit, traveled to Valencia to sign Diaz 10 days before his 18th birthday.
"I couldn't wait to tell my mom and my family," Diaz said.
He played in the Venezuela Summer League in 2009, using that throwing arm to gun down 19 of 42 runners attempting to steal against him. Diaz arrived in the United States the following spring, eager to hit his way to the majors.
That eagerness was met by a stern message from his rookie ball manager, though. Tom Prince, now the Pirates' bench coach and a former major league catcher, told Diaz to forget about hitting. Prince added that Diaz must become a superb defender to have a chance at ever playing in Pittsburgh.
"He had to work on everything," Prince said. "There are wild pitchers at that level and they’re bouncing breaking balls. ... He’s really worked at his craft. It hasn’t been given to him. He’s worked."
Diaz absorbed the message. He had a thirst for knowledge and was willing to do whatever it took to realize his dream of reaching the major leagues. But it wasn't until he started to firmly grasp the English language that Diaz was able to use his personality and determination to become a presence behind the plate.
"It’s a process,' Diaz said. "It takes time to recognize, to learn. It’s difficult."
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Diaz, entering his eighth season of pro baseball, is fluent in English, but he watches television to continue to learn — a tool he's used since arriving at Pirate City in 2010 — and is no longer shy about asking a teammate to repeat a word or explain its meaning.
It wasn't easy at first, though. Coaches and other Latin Americans urged him to put as much time as possible into studying English. After all, unlike some position players, he needed to be able to communicate with everyone on the field.
"I heard from different guys that the catcher has to know English," Diaz said. "The catcher has to have good relationships with the pitcher. All the coaches told me that if you want to be a catcher in the major leagues, you have to speak English. You have to have relationships with the pitchers and everybody."
In 2015, he won Baseball America's "Captain's Catcher" award, given annually to the best defensive catcher in all of minor league baseball, when he made 60 starts at Triple-A Indianapolis. As he learned the language, Diaz slowly started to disprove his doubters, surpassing Reese McGuire as the Pirates' catcher of the future. He threw out runners at clips of 41, 22, 27 and 26 percent during the first four years of his minor-league career.
Meanwhile, he started to forge close relationships with starting pitchers, beginning to better understand each man's personality and how to best help them succeed. With starting pitchers, Diaz can take a more light-hearted approach. When the game is on the line, relief pitchers need to be handled differently.
Diaz can be brutally honest, nurturing and firm.
"It’s nice to have a catcher that, if something goes wrong, some people are going to be a little bit hesitant," Steven Brault said. "Diaz is very good at saying, ‘Papi, you need to get the pitch there, and in that situation the pitch needs to be made.' You listen to a guy like that."
Diaz explained: "You have to know each guy. Everyone has a different personality. Some guys you have to talk nice and easy. Some guys you have to go to the mound and say, ‘Hey, wake up, let’s go!’ You have to recognize the situation and which guys you can do that with."
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Diaz was limited to 35 games in 2016 after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to remove bone chips in his right elbow and being diagnosed with a left leg infection.
With Chris Stewart still on the Pirates' roster, Diaz was sent back to Triple-A at the start of last season. He was recalled twice in May and although he showed flashes of being ready, Hurdle expressed concerns about Diaz's work behind the plate.
Diaz was too quick to try to pick off runners at first base. His technique blocking balls was inconsistent. Reading swing paths continued to be a challenge. More important, Hurdle wanted Diaz to invest himself in becoming a student of the game, particularly in pregame meetings.
He proved to Hurdle and himself in September that he's ready to take the next step.
"It’s time," Hurdle said. "He’s developed relationships. He’s poured into guys. He’s developed street cred with the way he blocks balls and the game-calling he’s done with them. ... The relationships have developed. He’s shown knowledge. He’s shown some wisdom. He’s shown the ability to be firm. All those things. I think it’s one of the strengths he has that he’s had to develop here because of the environment."
With Francisco Cervelli out for the season, Diaz started 18 of the Pirates' final 20 games, helping Jameson Taillon, Chad Kuhl and Trevor Williams achieve a combined 2.96 ERA in 73 innings over the final five weeks. Although he batted .220, Hurdle told reporters this winter that Diaz was ready to be an everyday catcher.
When Diaz arrived for spring training last month, he expressed excitement for the opportunity ahead. Yet, as he sat at his locker stall at LECOM Park this week, Diaz spoke of doing whatever it takes to improve — the same way he told Prince nearly eight years ago.
"He’s come a long ways," Taillon said. "When you’re a young catcher, I played with him in Low A and he loved throwing guys out, showing off his arm, taking big swings. Now, he’s really invested in the pregame meetings. He’s got an approach at the plate. He picks and chooses spots to show his arm. He’s really matured."