Phillies make first signing of offseason, agree to one-year deal with Jordan Romano

Just a day after the Mets exploded baseball by signing Juan Soto to a 15-year, $765 million contract, the Phillies made their first move of the offseason.

The Phils have agreed to a one-year, $7.75 million deal, pending a physical, with free-agent reliever Jordan Romano, taking over either Jeff Hoffman or Carlos Estevez’s spot in the bullpen.

Romano posted a 2.37 ERA in 186 innings from 2021-23, allowing a .172 opponent’s batting average, as the closer for the Blue Jays, making the American League All-Star roster in 2022 and ’23.

However, in 13.2 innings Romano posted a 6.59 ERA in 2024 and ended up needing season-ending elbow surgery.

The Blue Jays non-tendered Romano on November 22 rather than go through the arbitration process, and is now a member of the Philadelphia Phillies.

The 31-year-old Canadian throws a four-seam fastball and slider. His fastball averages 97 and his slider stays in the upper-80s.

This is a low-risk, high-reward deal for the Phillies. With how the reliever market is shaping up to be, $7.75 million is not terrible. And if Caleb Cotham and his team are able to work with him and reignite what Romano had from 2021-23, the Phils could have another great closer. Something this team has been missing since Brad Lidge‘s perfect season in 2008.

In other news, the Phils have remained interested in a reunion with Hoffman, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported Monday afternoon. However, it is unclear if they can find a match, Gelb wrote. Hoffman has been looked upon as a starter by many teams, and it is unclear if the Phils are interested in adding him to their starting rotation.

Speaking of starting pitchers, Japanese phenomenon Roki Sasaki was posted on Monday, and the Phillies are “in the mix” for him, per Jim Bowden of The Athletic.

The 23-year-old Sasaki is the best pitcher on the market, as he has been dominant in the Japanese Pacific League. In 69 games, Sasaki had a 2.02 ERA and has 524 strikeouts to just 91 walks in 414.2 innings pitched. Crazy numnbers.

The Dodgers are the favorites to land him, of course, as Sasaki would like to be on the West Coast. And who would pass up the chance to play with Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto?

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