With one door closed, another seemingly has opened for former Blue Jays all-star closer Jordan Romano.
After being designated for assignment and then released by the Los Angeles Angels last week, the Canadian reliever has joined the Colorado Rockies organization.
According to Thomas Harding of MLB.com, the Markham, Ont., native signed a minor-league deal with the franchise and will report to the team’s performance lab in Scottsdale, Ariz., before seeing any game action.
It was unclear which level of the Rockies organization the 33-year-old Romano will be assigned to.
Romano 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.
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 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 to not 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.
Over the course of his eight-year career so far, Romano has a record of 22-23 with 117 saves and an ERA of 3.92. The 6-foot-5 righty has struck out 344 batters in 280.1 innings pitched.