ROMANO ELEVATES LEVEL OF EXCITEMENT FOR JAYS
Manager has zero hesitation signalling righty from bullpen with game on the line
Jordan Romano, Canadian-born reliever and early-season sensation on the Toronto Blue Jays’ pitching staff, is having a flashback to his youthful days on the other side of the border.
He’s at the Tim Hortons counter near the team’s downtown hotel here in this oddly displaced summer and is savouring a taste from his real home.
“Timmies, man, it’s been a while,” the Markham, Ont.-born Jay says with a laugh beneath his face covering.
The fact that Romano hasn’t been back to Canada regularly since sometime last fall may have something to do with the sizzling and sensational breakthrough season he’s having in the bullpen.
When Romano allowed a single in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s extra-inning loss to the Miami Marlins, it was the first hit he had allowed in 2020.
In the impressive process he set a pair of club records for innings (8.2) and batters faced (29) without allowing a hit to start the season.
“He worked his tail off this off-season,” Jays pitching coach Pete Walker said when asked how Romano has emerged as such a high-leverage staple.
“He’s got consistency on his fastball, and his delivery looks great. He’s got a mindset that is unmatched right now.
“He’s just an animal on the mound.”
That animal presence comes with a unique look, in part borrowed from injured Jays closer Ken Giles, and in part accented with touches of Romano’s own steely-eyed focus.
“I was watching (Giles do it) so decided to try it out,” Romano said, of the deep crouch and glare he settles into as he awaits the sign from his catcher.
“He’s one of the best closers in the game. I really feel like for me when I go down to that squat position, it’s like me being ready to throw. It separates each pitch from the other and helps me lock in
“I’d say it’s purely mental. Once I get up from that, I’m locked in and ready to throw.”
His fastball routinely hums across the plate in the high 90s and he’s become a valued late-inning specialist for manager Charlie Montoyo.
While there is understandable hesitation to anoint him the closer of the future, the potential certainly exists.
“Ultimately down the road I want to be a closer, that’s one of my goals,” Romano said. “But right now I’ll pitch wherever they want me to pitch.”
It’s been quite a lengthy road for the 27-year-old, who was selected by the Jays way down in the 10th round of the 2014 draft. An uneven minor-league career prompted the Jays to leave him unprotected at the 2018 Rule 5 draft, where the Chicago White Sox scooped him up.
But when Romano failed to stick with the South Siders in 2019, the Jays brought him back and the ascent has been rapid. Giddy at the opportunity of his major-league debut last summer, he pitched a 1-2-3 inning in Baltimore in June, striking out two.
Coincidently it was a hot run early last season here in Buffalo when he was pitching for the triple-a Bisons that earned him the long-awaited promotion.
Injuries limited his workload to just 17.1 innings as a rookie, but getting his feet wet in the big leagues served Romano well.
It certainly motivated him through the productive off-season, which in turn led to his emergence as a force in the bullpen in 2020.
“He wants the ball every night and he just loves to work,” Walker said. “He’s the kind of guy you dream about in your bullpen. He wants to pitch and he wants to be out there with the game on the line.
“That’s his mentality and it’s happened pretty quick for him.”
Montoyo has seen it as well and thus has had zero hesitation signalling for the righty to trot in from the bullpen with the game on the line.
“The way he looks at the plate and grabs the ball when you see his eyes, he’s locked in,” Montoyo said, citing the expression Romano uses himself. “I love seeing that, when somebody’s in the zone.
“The way he’s pitching right now and his intensity? Yeah, he could be a closer some day. He could do it easy.”
As much as the coaching staff and Jays fans have appreciated
Romano’s efforts, Walker says an even better gauge is how his enthusiastic teammates react.
“Teammates let you know how they feel and are an indication of what’s going on and they love to see him on the mound,” Walker said.
“They feel really good when he’s out there.
“In the spring we saw that potential, but Jordan has taken that opportunity and seized it so it’s been a lot of fun to watch.
“He’s simplified his game and physically he feels great. That’s a pretty good combo to have.”
He wants the ball every night and he just loves to work ... He’s the kind of guy you dream about in your bullpen. He wants to pitch and he wants to be out there with the game on the line.