How will Romano’s injury influence the Blue Jays’ deadline plans?
TORONTO — On Saturday, the Blue Jays placed All-Star closer Jordan Romano on the 15-day injured list due to lower back discomfort, putting a wrench in a critical stretch of their schedule that includes the Aug. 1 trade deadline.
Romano first experienced back pain earlier this month during the All-Star Game, which forced him to leave early. A couple additional days of rest helped Romano feel comfortable enough to pitch, but his back tightened up again in Friday’s 4-1 victory over the Angels. This time, it was less subtle, forcing Toronto to summon the IL shortly before Saturday’s 6-1 victory over Los Angeles.
The Canadian right-hander was clearly in discomfort, grinding through two outs before stepping gingerly off the mound. This is an issue of stiffness and discomfort that appeared to hurt Romano the most near the finish of his delivery, when his right leg swung through and landed. He will now take at least 15 days to prepare for the stretch run.
This is not a tiny loss. Romano has a 2.79 ERA this season, and his 28 saves put him tied for seventh in MLB as of Saturday. It even appeared that he’d have a chance to break Duane Ward’s club record of 45 saves in 1993, which has held for three decades, but now the club’s focus will be on getting Romano back to his former self in time for September.
In Saturday’s triumph, which secured the Blue Jays’ season series victory over the Angels, the bullpen bent but did not break after taking over for Alek Manoah, and Alejandro Kirk’s two home runs helped establish enough of a lead to avoid a save situation entirely.
“I think we’d probably mix and match based on where we are in the lineup,” manager John Schneider said. “Look at back-end pitchers like Yimi García, Tim Mayza, and Erik Swanson. I believe you just mix and match depending on where we are in the lineup.”
Swanson, on the other hand, is the logical choice to be first in line, and he is coming off one of the club’s most important bullpen innings of the season. After Kevin Gausman loaded the bases with no outs in the seventh inning of Friday’s game, Swanson came in and retired three Angels batters in a row, putting an end to a surge that could have completely changed the game.
“To come in right there with two strikeouts [to start], it’s what we were banking on with his splitter,” Schneider went on to say. “He’s done it all year in high-leverage situations, perhaps even more so than what we’re putting Jordan in with a three-run lead in the ninth. He’s been amazing.”
García has 15 saves for the Marlins in 2021, and the Blue Jays prioritize having experienced backups for Romano in crucial situations. If there were two lefties to work around in the ninth inning, Mayza would be the man to call.
