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The Phillies and right-hander Jordan Romano are in settlement on a contract, per Jeff Passan of ESPN (X hyperlink). It’s a one-year deal value $7.75MM, per Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer (X hyperlink). Reporter Jim Salisbury (X hyperlink) beforehand indicated the Phils had been considering Romano.
The Phils are betting on a bounceback. Romano, 32 in February, simply completed a irritating and injury-marred season with the Blue Jays however was their nearer for 3 years previous to that. The righty saved 95 video games for the Jays from 2021 to 2023, tossing 186 innings with a 2.37 earned run common. He struck out 30.3% of batters confronted in that point whereas giving out walks at a 9.2% clip and getting grounders on 42.3% of balls in play.
However 2024 was largely a misplaced season for him. He began the season on the injured listing attributable to some proper elbow irritation and by no means gave the impression to be totally wholesome. He went on and off the IL all year long, making simply 15 appearances with a 6.59 ERA. His 21% strikeout fee in that small pattern was not solely beneath his earlier work but additionally beneath league common.
He underwent arthroscopic surgical procedure on the elbow in July and was given an estimated six-week shutdown timeframe. The Jays had been hoping to get Romano again on the mound earlier than the season was up however that didn’t come to move. His final main league look was Might 29.
The Jays may have retained Romano for another season by way of arbitration. Salaries nearly by no means go down by way of the arb system, so MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected the righty for a similar $7.75MM wage he made in 2024. The Jays apparently weren’t prepared to fork over that type of money for the prospect to search out out if Romano may recover from his misplaced season, as he was not tendered a contract for 2025. Final week, basic supervisor Ross Atkins stated that he anticipated Romano to be wholesome and hoped to re-sign him, however presumably at a lower cost level. As a substitute, it appears Romano will get a contemporary begin with a brand new group and not using a paycut.
The Philadelphia bullpen has been shuffled fairly a bit in current months. They traded away Seranthony Domínguez and Gregory Soto on the commerce deadline, then misplaced Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez to free company at season’s finish. They nonetheless have some good arms again there, together with Orion Kerkering and Matt Strahm, however they’ve naturally been in search of bullpen upgrades this winter.
Choosing Romano additionally is sensible for monetary causes. The Phils have spent some huge cash on their roster in recent times, each by way of free company and extensions of incumbent gamers. That has led to them paying the aggressive steadiness tax three years in a row now. Going into 2025, they had been projected to have a excessive payroll and CBT quantity but once more, earlier than even making any offseason strikes.
That has seemingly led to a shift in method this winter. Whereas they’ve been linked to most of the prime accessible free brokers in current offseasons, they seemingly didn’t get entangled within the Juan Soto frenzy and there have been many rumors about them attempting to commerce gamers like Nick Castellanos, Alec Bohm and others.
They reportedly had some curiosity in re-signing Hoffman and Estévez however each will seemingly be signing offers far bigger than this pact for Romano. Firstly of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Hoffman for a four-year, $44MM deal. That was earlier than the golf equipment reportedly expressed curiosity in him as a starter, which may probably enhance his incomes energy. Estévez was projected for a extra modest $27MM assure over three years, however nonetheless a notable dedication.
By going for Romano, the Phils are hoping that they’re making an enormous improve to their bullpen however at a comparatively low value since they’re shopping for low. There may be some danger there, as relievers are typically unstable generally and Romano is coming off an injury-marred season, but it surely’s a logical gamble to take. If issues go particularly effectively, it’s attainable the Phils may prolong a qualifying supply to Romano on the finish of subsequent yr. Qualifying presents for relievers are uncommon, however guys like Josh Hader, Raisel Iglesias and Will Smith have acquired them in recent times.
Now factoring in Romano, RosterResource tasks the Phillies for a $270MM payroll. That might be a franchise document by a major margin, with Cot’s Baseball Contracts having them within the $242-244MM vary in recent times however by no means increased than that. RR tasks the CBT quantity at $289MM for subsequent yr. That’s not solely past the $241MM base threshold but additionally the second and third tiers of $261MM and $281MM, respectively. As a third-time CBT payor, the Phils will likely be taking a look at a 50% base tax subsequent yr in addition to surcharges of 12%, 45% and 60% for spending past the upper tiers. Which means they’re already slated for a 95% tax fee on any further spending proper now and a 110% fee in the event that they transcend $301MM, although efficiently buying and selling away a notable contract may drop them decrease. If they continue to be above the third line of $281MM, they’d additionally see their prime decide within the 2026 draft dropped again ten spots. All of those might be important elements because the membership appears to make additional upgrades in the remainder of the offseason.
For the Jays, remaking the bullpen will even be an enormous storyline within the coming weeks and months. Their reduction group had a collective ERA of 4.82 in 2024, forward of simply the Rockies and a key issue of their disappointing season. Getting higher outcomes out of the bullpen will likely be crucial for a turnaround however they may have to take action with a brand new nearer. Chad Inexperienced racked up 17 saves in 2024 whereas Romano was largely out of motion and might be the favourite for the job amongst guys at present on the roster, however they may maybe discover an exterior addition and bump inexperienced right into a setup function.
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