A day after the Mets reeled in the biggest fish of the free agent market, the Phillies countered with a move of their own.

The former Blue Jay is a six-year veteran and prior to last season, was regarded as one of the best closers in the game. From 2021 to 2023, Romano racked up 95 saves for the Jays, tossing 186 innings with a 2.37 earned run average. He had a 30.3% strikeout rate, 9.2% walk rate and 42.3% ground ball rate. He was named to the American League All-Star team in 2022 and 2023.

That “pending physical” line may be crucial because an injury ruined Romano’s 2024 season. He suffered from right elbow inflammation, that required him to undergo arthroscopic surgery. He was limited to 15 largely ineffective appearances in which he had a 6.59 ERA.

According to Ken Rosenthal, Romano will come in at a slightly lower price point than Juan Soto did with the Mets:

This seems like a decent gamble for the Phillies to take. The team – who could lose relievers Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez in free agency – assuredly plans to use Romano as one of their high-leverage relievers. If he can regain his pre-injury form, the Phillies will have greatly bolstered their bullpen at a good price. If not…well, it’s only a one-year deal.