The Philadelphia Phillies’ bullpen is floundering, and Jordan Romano is by far the easiest target for ire.
This winter, the Phillies let former All-Stars Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez walk in free agency and instead signed Romano, who had just been non-tendered by the Toronto Blue Jays, to a one-year deal.
So far, that transaction has looked disastrous. Romano has allowed 14 earned runs in just 9 1/3 innings (13.50 ERA), while Hoffman joined Romano’s old team and has 18 strikeouts and a 1.46 ERA in 12 1/3 innings.
The Phillies have to be considering other options in high-leverage situations, if Romano even has any sort of grip still on the closer role. But after Philadelphia’s sweep at the hands of the New York Mets, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski seemed to indicate that the 32-year-old still had a bit longer of a leash.
“I try not to go overboard early,” Dombrowski said, per The Athletic’s Matt Gelb. “I usually have said 40 games. There’s no rule to that.”
However, Dombrowski also issued a warning to Romano, and frankly all of the Phillies’ pitchers. Get the job done, or the longtime head honcho will find someone else who can.
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“I don’t want to sound like I’m just being dismissive,” Dombrowski said. “Get outs. So, really, that’s what we’re looking to do. I don’t care if you throw left-handed, right-handed, underhanded, overhanded, get outs.”
Romano probably won’t try throwing left-handed anytime soon. But he’s got to stop putting the ball on a tee for opposing hitters, or he’ll be in a bad spot with the Phillies and will also face long odds of getting a guaranteed contract after the season.
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