When the Philadelphia Phillies signed relief pitcher Jordan Romano to a one-year, $8.5 million contract in early December, it was viewed as a low-risk, high-reward type of deal.
Now, it’s a low-velocity, high-concern type of situation.
Facing the Los Angeles Dodgers at home on Sunday, Romano entered in the seventh inning with the Phillies leading 6-4. He gave up a leadoff single on a 1-2 pitch to the No. 9 batter, Andy Pages, and after walking Shohei Ohtani, Romano allowed a double to Mookie Betts that scored Pages.
And with that, Romano was pulled from the game. Three batters faced, zero outs earned, a cacophony of boos from the crowd at Citizens Bank Park.
After Romano was relieved by Orion Kerkering, Ohtani would score on a sacrifice fly, and Betts also came home on a Will Smith double, giving Los Angeles a 7-6 lead. The Phillies offense responded with two runs in the bottom of the seventh, and the home team held on to win 8-7, but Romano was left searching for answers.
“On any team, you want to come in and contribute to wins,” Romano said in the clubhouse after the game. “When you’re not doing that, it doesn’t feel great, for sure.”
Decreased Velocity Contributes to Challenges for Jordan Romano
GettyPhiladelphia Phillies pitcher Jordan Romano has had a challenging start to the 2025 season, with decreased velocity contributing to a 15.75 ERA through his first five appearances.
It’s been a challenging season so far for Romano, who in five appearances has blown two saves and allowed seven runs on six hits and four walks in four innings pitched for a whopping ERA of 15.75. The opposition has batted .353 off of the right-hander, who turns 32 on April 21.
The biggest concern for the right-hander, who turns 32 on April 21, has been a noticeable decrease in velocity on his fastball.
From 2021 to 2023, Romano was one of the American League’s top closers, recording a sparkling 2.37 ERA with 95 saves and earning two All-Star selections. But 2024 told a different story.
Struggling with elbow issues, Romano posted a 6.59 ERA last year and notched just eight saves over 15 appearances before landing on the injured list in June. After undergoing season-ending elbow surgery in July, the Blue Jays opted not to tender him a contract, walking away from what would have been a projected $7.75 million arbitration salary.
Early in free agency, Romano sent teams with potential interest data from a bullpen session that he said, “was probably the hardest I’ve thrown … in my life.” Philadelphia wasted little time in signing him to what was essentially a “prove it” deal.
“It’s pretty shocking that he was available on the free agent market,” Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto said. “With how much success he’s had and the track record he had in big spots, being a closer and having great seasons, it’s pretty surprising that after one year of being injured and not having the season he wanted to [that Romano was let go].”
Romano was encouraged during spring training, as he allowed just four hits and two unearned runs in 8.2 innings, with eight strikeouts and two walks.
“It feels like my old self,” said Romano, who had been experiencing the elbow issues since the end of the 2023 season.
Phillies Manager Rob Thomson Remains Confident in Jordan Romano
Once the regular season began, however, Romano’s velocity became inconsistent. When he was healthy in Toronto, Romano’s fastball averaged 96.8 mph. Against the Dodgers on Sunday, it sat in the 92-94 range, and overall through his five appearances, the pitch has bounced around between 91 and 96, which Phillies manager Rob Thomson admitted was “a red flag.”
“He’s got a long track of success, so, to a certain degree, we have to stay with him and have confidence in him,” Thomson said.
But first, Romano has to regain confidence in himself.
“Got to get the velo up, because with that, when the velo’s right, it helps the slider, too,” Romano said.
“I’m used to kind of being just 96 [mph], around there the whole time, you know what I mean? So yeah, I don’t know what’s going on right now, but I’ve got to figure that out, for sure.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Low-Risk, High-Reward Pitcher Becomes Low-Velocity, High-Concern Problem for Phillies appeared first on Heavy Sports.