The Blue Jays not done Jordan Romano a contract offer was not advertised before the market close this week, Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star Reports. This apparent lack of interest in keeping Romano at all costs (not to mention his projected arbitration salary of $7.75 million) likely precludes any chance of a reunion between Romano and the Jays, so the two-time All-Star will almost certainly pitch elsewhere in 2025. It wasn't necessarily a surprise that Romano wasn't tendered, given his high price tag and the uncertainty surrounding his health following his injury-plagued 2024 season.
Romano did not play after May 29 and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow in July. As Chisholm notes, Romano told Mike Wilner of the Toronto Star in early November that he would soon start throwing off a mound and that he was feeling great while recovering from his surgery. While more details about Romano's health are sure to emerge in the offseason, it is clear that the Jays did not share the backup's confidence in his elbow. Finding a new closer is now the latest item on Toronto's long winter to-do list, and the Jays already had a lot of work to do to repair a bullpen that was among the worst in baseball last season .
More from the AL East region….
- The Yankees are open to seeing you again Jonathan Loaisigaalthough Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post reports that the Bombers are one of 14 teams that have shown interest in the reliever. Loaisiga has thrown just 21 2/3 big league innings over the last two seasons, as elbow problems (including surgery to remove a bone spur) limited him to 17 2/3 frames in 2023 and he pitched just four innings before one UCL surgery quickly ended his 2024 season. Loaisiga's procedure was not a Tommy John procedure, and he threw from 90 feet for scouts earlier this week, with the Yankees among the clubs having an evaluator on hand. All of Loaisiga's 163 MLB games have come in a Yankees uniform, so the team is very familiar with the right-hander's abilities when healthy and also has the inside scoop on his health. Signing Loaisiga wouldn't be expensive for the Yankees or any other team that would offer him a contract this winter, making him an interesting low-buy candidate in the bullpen market.
- Austin Hays was traded by the Orioles to the Phillies before the trade deadline, but now Hays is a free agent after being not advertised, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com believes there is a chance Hays could return to Baltimore. Hays had an injury-plagued 2024 season, which included a serious kidney infection that occurred during his time in Philadelphia, and he posted a below-average 98 wRC+ from a .255/.303/.396 slash line in 255 total plate appearances . The outfielder was significantly better both offensively and defensively during the 2021-23 seasons when he was healthy, and Baltimore has a clear need for right-handed hitting outfielders (and right-handed hitting players in general).
- It remains to be seen if the Rays will never play at Tropicana Field again, but for at least the 2025 season the club will play at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. The move will impact the Rays' lineup plans, as some adjustments will obviously be necessary simply due to the fact that the Rays will now be playing outdoors during the summer in Florida rather than in a domed stadium. With multiple rain outages now likely, President of Baseball Operations Erik Neander wants to increase pitching depth with multiple innings at both the major and minor leagues. As Neander told Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times“It's about making sure we can protect our arms and maneuver the roster so that if a game gets stopped and delayed after two innings and you lose a starter, then you have to cover four or five [innings] Before you can go to the bullpen, what matters is that you are able to maneuver as needed day in and day out, cover it and do it in a way that is responsible for the well-being of the group.” More pitching will also be necessary, as the Rock is expected to provide a much more hitter-friendly environment than the Trop, although the Rays' own hitters may also benefit from this situation.
