Anybody who follows baseball knows that the Colorado Rockies haven’t been close to scaling any mountains recently, often residing close to the bottom of the standings.
Things have gotten so bad that not only did the team bring in a former Blue Jays closer whose best is clearly behind him, but they’re also giving him the full-on star treatment.
While most MLB clubs tend to pump up the volume and hype when their closers come into the game in save situations, the general feeling amongst fans is that it should at least be somewhat earned.
Which begs the question: Does Jordan Romano, who was released by the Angels earlier this season and got called up by Colorado on Saturday and inserted directly into the Rockies’ closer role, deserve it?
“The Rockies are currently giving Jordan Romano a closer entrance, complete with flames,” Grace Del Pizzo, a Philadelphia-based reporter, posted on X. “This is something, for sure.”
The video clip showed flame graphics being broadcast on all of the videoboards at Coors Field and the song Tsunami by DVBBS & Borgeous played loudly while Romano entered the game from the bullpen to little fanfare.
While many users on social media may have questioned the theatrics of the fallen star, the hype-up ploy appears to be working.
Despite his fastball still clocking in below what it was in his prime, Romano has been lights out in his two appearances for Colorado so far.
In each of his outings on Saturday and Sunday against the visiting San Francisco Giants, Romano allowed one hit and struck out two. He also picked up the save by closing out Sunday’s game, his fifth of the season and No. 118 of his eight-year career.
Why did the Angels cut Romano?
The Markham, Ont., native began the season on fire as the Angels’ closer, picking up four saves in six scoreless appearances over five total innings.
However, he then blew two consecutive save opportunities against the New York Yankees, giving up five runs and recording just one out in two games. He bounced back with two scoreless appearances in low-stakes situations before getting lit up again.
In his final appearance before being designated for assignment, Romano gave up four runs on three hits in the eighth inning of a 12-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Saturday.
After being designated for assignment and then released by the team in late April, the Canadian reliever joined the Colorado Rockies organization on a minor-league deal.
His tenure with the Angels came to an end with a record of 0-2 and an ERA of 10.13.
How was Romano’s time with the Jays?
Romano had been somewhat of a hometown hero success story during his time with the Blue Jays.
After being selected in the 10th round of the 2014 MLB draft, Romano made his MLB debut during the 2019 season, but didn’t become a key member in the team’s bullpen until 2021.
He represented the team at the MLB All-Star Game in 2022 and 2023 before he began to struggle mightily in 2024.
The team opted not to bring him back following the season and he signed for 2025 with the Philadelphia Phillies, where his struggles continued, posting an ERA of 8.23 in 49 games.