The Phillies signed Romano, 32, to a one-year, $8.5 million deal in December 2024, hoping he could re-establish himself as one of the game’s top closers after a trying ’24 season that led to him being non-tendered by the Blue Jays.
That came after Romano made just 15 appearances with a 6.59 ERA for Toronto in 2024, missing significant time with a right elbow injury that eventually required surgery. He had one year of arbitration eligibility remaining after 2024, but the Blue Jays chose not to tender him a contract for ’25, making him a free agent.
A Canada native born in Markham, Ontario, Romano initially joined Toronto as a 10th-round Draft pick out of Oral Roberts University in 2014. Romano had a brief stopover with the Rangers, who purchased his contract from the White Sox after Chicago selected him in the 2018 Rule 5 Draft, but he was sent back to the Blue Jays’ organization in March ’19.
Formerly a starter, Romano moved into a relief role during the 2019 campaign. He made his MLB debut out of the Blue Jays’ bullpen that June, and while he went on to post a 7.63 ERA over 17 appearances in 2019, he found success (1.23 ERA) over 15 games during the truncated 2020 campaign.
Romano earned his first All-Star selection the following year and was selected again in 2023. He had 72 saves over those two seasons, ranking second in MLB behind the Guardians’ Emmanuel Clase (86).
Pomeranz, a 12-year veteran, was one of the most pleasant surprises this past season for the Cubs. After not appearing in the big leagues from 2022-24, he compiled a 2.17 ERA in 57 outings.
“I’d love to play longer,” Pomeranz said after the Cubs were eliminated by the Brewers in the NLDS. “We’ll see what happens. But like I said, I surprised myself. If you’d asked me that last year, I would’ve been like, ‘Ah, I’ll play for a little bit.’ But I felt great this year. Even out there today, it felt great. One pitch, ball goes out. But other than that, just an awesome year.”