The Blue Jays have announced that closer Jordan Romano has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to discomfort in his right elbow. Brendon Little, a left-hander, was called up from Triple-A Buffalo to replace Romano on the active roster.
Romano has been sidelined with elbow discomfort for the second time this season; his initial stay on the injured list pushed his 2024 debut back to April 16. Between his two IL stints, Romano’s ERA stands at 6.59 over 13 2/3 innings. Romano’s strikeout rate of 21% is much lower than his historical strikeout rate of 30.5K% entering the season, and batters have been absolutely teeing off on Romano, hitting 50% of his pitches hard. The right-hander has also allowed four home runs in his limited sample size of 13 1/3 frames, after giving up 10 home runs in 123 innings in 2022–23.
In summary, Romano hasn’t looked well this season, whether it’s because to ongoing elbow troubles or more serious difficulties. According to Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi, Jays manager John Schneider told reporters that Romano’s MRI came back clean, indicating that there is no structural damage that could jeopardize his season. It’s possible that this 15-day absence is just a reset to get Romano completely healthy and mechanically sound, or that the Blue Jays will keep him out for longer than 15 days to ensure that Romano’s inflammation issues are resolved.
If the Jays can’t recover from their disappointing 27-29 start, Romano (if healthy) is one of many players on the roster who could be speculative trade targets come the deadline. Romano has one more year of arbitration eligibility before becoming a free agent after the 2025 season, and this extra year of control might make him a valuable asset for teams in need of bullpen relief. Naturally, Romano would need to return to action soon and in excellent health, as well as in form similar to his 2020-23 level.
While Toronto’s poor offense has received the majority of the blame for the team’s 27-29 start, the relief corps has also been a huge concern. The Blue Jays’ 4.60 bullpen ERA ranks 26th out of 30 teams, with Yimi Garcia being the only consistently trustworthy option among the other set of failing relievers, with Romano bearing the brunt of these troubles given his role as closer. Unsurprisingly, Schneider stated that Garcia will likely handle the majority of the save situations while Romano is away, with Chad Green also weighing into the closer mix now that he has returned from his own time on the IL.