Dec. 17: Romo’s new deal comes with a $4.75MM salary in 2020, reports La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The 2021 option is valued at $5MM and comes with a $250K buyout, bringing the maximum value to $9.75MM over two years.
Dec. 16: The Twins are nearing a deal with reliever Sergio Romo, according to MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (via Twitter). If and when it’s complete, it’ll be a one-year arrangement that guarantees the Meister Sports client $5MM, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). It seems the pact could grow to $10MM in total value if a 2021 option is exercised, but the precise details still aren’t clear.
Romo gave the Minnesota organization just what it was looking for when he came over in a summer trade. In 27 appearances, he carried a 27:4 K/BB ratio. Including his early-season work with the Marlins, Romo rode his still-biting slider to 60 1/3 innings of 3.43 ERA pitching.
Given that Romo will turn 37 before the start of the next season, it’s fair to wonder how much longer he can keep this going. Then again, he has continued to deliver good innings with much the same formula as ever before. And the Twins don’t need to worry about the long haul here. Romo is being paid for his stabilizing presence in the relief corps of a team that fully intends to contend in 2020.
That the value-conscious, analytically inclined Twins front office kept pace with the bidding on Romo is a strong indication that expectations are relatively high. While he isn’t the K/BB monster he once was — he produced seventy of the former and just five of the latter in 2011 — Romo still produced a 13.9% swinging-strike rate last year. Durability isn’t a concern. Over his dozen years in the majors, Romo has thrown 623 frames and carried a 2.92 ERA along the way.
It’s still possible imagine another bullpen move for the Twins, but this fills a big need on the Minnesota roster. That leaves the focus, as ever, on the club’s rotation. With Madison Bumgarner becoming the latest top starter to head elsewhere, and the rival White Sox among the organizations still facing a need in the rotation, the intrigue is perhaps only increasing.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
If that’s the best the Twins do, there are going to be a lot of disappointed Twins fans, they have a real chance at a ring, yet they don’t want to get the player/players to put them over the top, same as the Dodgers smh.
Nothing is guaranteed in baseball, if you have a real shot at a ring you should go for it, prospects & money come and go, but flags fly forever.
Hey… Maybe they are thinking that he has started more games than any pitcher in the last 2 years? And they need a starter. I know he’s just an opener but maybe the Twins brass is actually that stupid. Just sayin.
You be preaching to the choir mr Mets fan. Twins seem content having the same exact team as last year and losing in three to the Yankees again.
Twins owners are terrified of spending more than 50 million on one player. Small market team with big market money but unwilling to spend any of it.
I’d be happy to have him back in MN!
That having been said, Twins still need STARTING Pitching
Let’s not conclude that the Twins off season acquisitions are over. There will be additions to the starting rotation without a doubt. I’m thinking it might be more trade related than free agent signing…
You seem to be in the next stage of Twins fan denial. Glad you made it past the first step where you think they’re going to spend on top talent because it’s obvious they should, and the second step where there are still really good options left in free agency and moved on to the part where you believe the Twins will acquire that rotation addition they need (ace) via the trade market.
Maybe just maybe this is just a bullpen piece that can be done. Doesn’t negate the need for starting pitching. Question is will it be free agent or a trade. Pretty confident they aren’t finished.
Agreed!
Happy to have Romo back.
My issue is, Romo is no longer a setup man. He’s a middle reliever type at best. Twins will rely on him again in the late innings to hold games down. They need another top bullpen arm to go with the rest.
Dude is going to pitch forever. I like watching guys who use spin, location, and deception. who are more art than power. there’s a chess match going on, or at least checkers ha ha.
I thought it was going to be the A’s all over Romo. Still, Money Sergio is getting from the Twins is good. Oh well…
Glad he’s coming back. Now get a closer and 2 good starters and 1B and 3B. Bring back Schoop, maybe Arriaz or however you spell it was a fluke.
I lost brain cells reading this comment
Way they are going the Twins had better load up on bullpen arms… gonna need ’em.
Whether it’s a trade or FA, I hope it happens ASAP..the suspense is killing me.(Starting Pitching)
I’m guessing he will be an ‘Opener’ and occasional closer?
MIN should look into Chris Archer. Can’t see him costing much and maybe could benefit from a change of scenery.
@angt22
As long as you dont have to give up much for him.
As talented as he is, something is missing. I’m not sure a “change of scenery” is it since he has only been in Pittsburgh for a year and a half.
Typical Twins move no matter who is in charge. Next up swept by the Yankees
People make this sort of lazy comment no matter the move. Romo is a solid reliever in a market lacking them, what’s the problem?
The problem is that the Twins very much implied that they would start making big moves “once the window was open to contend”. They won 100 games last year and the window is WIDE open, and all they’ve done so far is sign SOME of the guys that were on the team last year, and Alex Avila. They had a weak rotation last year, and one of the pieces of that rotation signed with Texas, so they’re not even getting all of it back. They continue to pretend to be active in the acquisition market, but never actually do anything.
I largely agree with you, but using the fact that they didn’t bring back Kyle Gibson as a negative isn’t the best argument. He looked like toast most of 2019.
Oh I agree. I’m just saying that the rotation was weak last year and they don’t even have as much as they had last year. You could possibly argue “addition by subtraction” with Gibson, but then you have to have a prospect that’s actually going to outperform him.
I love watching this man pitch, but c’mon, at some point that crafty 84 mph schtick is going to fizzle, is it not? I mean, seriously, wasn’t it obvious in most of the games last year that the guy is walking a tightrope out there? You can’t honestly want Sergio Romo at this stage of his career pitching critical 7th and 8th innings anymore. I’m tellin’ ya, it’s a recipe for disaster, no?
No.
You’d think so but he pitched very well in tough spots down the stretch for the Twins last year. His slider is still nasty. Occasionally a really good hitter will get locked in on it enough and be able to foul it off forcing his hand with the FB but he’s crafty enough to make it work most often.
Been a Twins fan as long as I can remember. Those complaining about the lack of superstar FA’s coming here, name the last FA superstar in his prime that chose Minnesota to sign with. I don’t want to make excuses for the front office, as they should be working as hard as they can to recruit great players who’ll make a difference to the team. But, while we all know Minnesota is great and we love it, far too many people who’ve never spent much time here don’t share the same feelings. They’ll want to go to the glitz and glamor of a New York, California, Chicago, or Boston. There’ll be players with geographic preferences too, as in the case with MadBum. We can make a trade, but it’ll cost a boat load of our prospects. If that happens, none of us who are demanding a big splash this offseason can whine about how we gave up the stud player when/if they develop into an impact player. The offseason is still playing out, pitchers and catchers don’t report for another two months. Chill out and wait and see what happens. If the front office doesn’t do enough by Feb, then we can complain.
Well stated! Too many “fans” want to be general managers. Many of the people complaining about the Twins not signing any of t(e big dollar pitchers are probably the same ones that complained about the big contract that Joe Maurer signed that handicapped the Twins for years. Trust in the FO!!!
Name the last time the Twins made the top offer on a super star free agent and the free agent chose to go elsewhere.
1…
Seems it’s never happened. The Twins can whine and cry all they like about not being a favored destination, yet players have signed to go to non-favored destinations many times once the team opens up the pocket book. If the Twins had offered Wheeler $125M, he’d be in a Twins uniform today.
It’s the front office personals job to recruit and sell Minnesota to players. No one wanted to play in Philly when they were horrible, and it too is a terrible place to live. But, that front office wooed players, and yes, OVERPIAD the premium guys to come to show the rest of the league “we mean business, we’re going to win!” Harper was born and raised in Las Vegas and signed in Philly. Toronto has worse money problems than Minnesota as they take in their revenue in Canadian currency and pay out in American dollars, but they have signed big named talent over the years. It boils down to commitment. This ownership group has proven time and again they are committed as long as it doesn’t cost them too much.
Teams build new ballparks and immediately they are assured of sell outs for, at least the first five years as a new attraction. Most teams use that influx of revenue (also new ball parks tend to host events like the all-star game, as we did $$$$) to build their team. Put the money back into the club, so that when the newness wears from the ballpark, they now have a winning product on the field which keeps fans coming. We did none of that!
Again, I have mentioned here that our front office was never more clear than this past trade deadline when we did nothing! We got Romo [serviceable and I like him] and then we got Dyson who was hurt from the moment he got off the plane! And, looks like he will never pitch again. I know there were not a lot of deals made last season, but teams were listening. Even the Mets got better at the deadline.
I will always cheer for the Twins, but I can’t put my money toward the product they are trying to sell us anymore. I just can’t. I gave up my tickets and will spend my summer traveling with my family, instead. I know it’s no skin off the Twins, but I’m guessing I am not alone…
They surely are committed (if that is what it boils down to, you nor I would know.) within the restraints that they have to put together a winning product, as do most-all front office teams. Why a real baseball fan would lose interest in a surprise team with 101 wins and complain about not fielding a winning team is lost on me. Mostly, both Minnesota and Philadelphia, if you want to generalize a state with a city in one sentence, are fine places to live.
Who is going to be left in February? The market is moving faster than it has in years.
I am with you, agree entirely. Big time guys don’t choose Minnesota. Everyone is always complaining about the owners or the front office not wanting to spend any money, but I think this is one of the last organizations who is responsible with their money, they simply won’t overpay for someone. These two guys in the front office are smart fella’s, they have a number someone is worth and they don’t exceed it just to exceed it. They have to be innovative on how they fill holes, if or when they trade Rosario for a starting pitcher, people will complain about that. The best thing that uneducated people need to do is look back in history and confirm exactly what you are saying. No big name guy is going to pick MN and MN will not overpay just to lure someone there. Can it be frustrating, yes absolutely. It can be very frustrating but fans who are true fans will see that these guys will have to get an impact pitcher by a trade. I just hope everyone doesn’t cry when its Rosario that gets traded for it.
That’s such a lame excuse, big name players choose where they can make money and contend. Minnesota has BOTH of those things going for them right now, but refuse to pony up money.
I don’t disagree with you. But plain an simple the Twins will not and have not overpaid for a free agent. They have all these analytical people that crunch the numbers and tell Falvey and Lavine what to pay and who to pay it to. If your waiting for a HUGE splash it is not going to happen, they wont overpay for a free agent when you can get the same production out of people already there or lower level names.
@twinsfan2016
As a Tribe fan, I sure wish you guys would spend crazily, wildly, excessively, because that doesn’t guarantee a team anything but heartache and regret.
I wish your new branitrust wasn’t bright and prudent; I wish they spent like the dumb Padres, Phillies, and Angels, but clearly they plan to hold their chips and most of their (incredibly good) young talent and wait for opportunities rather than overpay for past performance.
The biggest myths in the game are that one or two guys will “put a team over the top” or you need to “go all in and spend extra when the time is right.” Both of those have been spun by player agents for so long that fans believe it. Baseball is never about one or two guys, it’s about opportunity, luck, health, and circumstance. And if anyone can predict when the “time is right” and foretell the future, you need to be at the racetrack, not running a ballclub.
I wish like hell the Twins would run themselves like the White Sox, a team that can take good talent and a promising future and still find a way to mess it up (just watch) but I fear the Tribe will be tangling with a smart Twins operation for a long time…IF we can keep up.
Oh, and to the rest of you, just stop whining about no one wanting to come to Minnesota to be a free agent. Try being Cleveland in that regard. We’ve found it’s worthless to plead with anyone that it’s a good place to live and just try to make it a good place to work. Stand up tall, build the best organization you can, be competitive, and create a reputation for being a great place to play, and you’ll get a second look. And if no one sees that, you didn’t need or want them in the first place.
Best comment in the thread. Well put.
Boom
Didn’t the Tribe sign:
Tyler Naquin
Rajai Davis
Mike Napoli
The year they went to the World Series? Also got Trevor Bauer in a trade a couple years prior…
@Kipp35
Naquin was our first round draft pick. Rajai Davis was 36 years old and we paid him $5 million for one year to be a part-time OF and pinch runner. Mike Napoli was a broken down 34 year old who we paid $7 million for one year to DH (the previous year he made $16 million in Boston). We traded Shin Soo Choo for Trevor Bauer–a guy no one wanted anything to do with–and Bryan Shaw. Pretty good, huh?
It’s not like we’ve ever bee in something like this year’s Josh Donaldson or Zack Wheeler sweepstakes. or swimming in a pool requiring multi-year obligations.
People –even in Cleveland!–generally deride this kind of spending as “dumpster diving” like we’re shopping at Goodwill or something.. You’d think people would get it by now. If you’re smart, there’s a way to go about this without mortgaging your future or trading it away.
But hey, you can go about it the Padre way, tying up nearly $600 million in Wil Myers, Eric Hosmer, and Manny Machado because you think the “time is right” to get some veterans to go along with all the kids.
The Tribe’s most recent “significant” free-agent acquisitions were Nick Swisher (disaster), Micael Bourn (disaster), and Edwin Encarnacion (overpay). We won’t be doing much of that anymore, I don’t think (thank goodness.)
Those championships Cleveland has won helps your argument.
Wait….
Two of those signings were done after a season where the Indians won 68 games. 68. At least Edwin was after coming within 1 inning of a World Series. And, really, 2017 Cleveland blew that series against the Yanks. Point is there is a time to spend and a time not to. Probably a bad time after2-12 for Bourn and Swisher, proper time for Encarnacion. Minnesota is in a proper time-frame to spend. Cleveland chose not do, aside from EE.
The Tribe has essentially come within one game of winning it all four times in my lifetime. If you think that came down to a failure to “go all in when the time is right” or failing to get that “one guy that would put us over the top”, then by all means PLEASE, shove all your chips into the middle of the table.
I beg you, Twins, please do it! You’ll never, ever regret it!
We didn’t miss out on MadBum because of geographic preference, we missed out on MadBum because the Dbacks offered an additional year on the contract and the Twins, unsurprisingly, refused to match market value.
For a guy who has trended downhill the past few years. There are a lot of miles on his left arm. I am glad that the Twins didn’t sign him, if all that happens at the end of that deal is that he an even bigger shell of his former self, then I totally agree not going the extra year. Trust the guys who are running the show, they have put together some impressive signings this offseason, but not that HUGE knock your socks off, I cant believe we signed that guy signing, because the front office is responsible. It hasn’t been about money for about the last 10 years, They have given the keys to Falvey and Lavine, they are just making sure they make good investments and don’t spend just to spend.
@Phantomofdb
Geographic considerations certainly did come into play. He and his family love the Phoenix area and wanted to be there. This wasn’t all about the money or years. I’m sure the Twins made a solid effort, just came up short for a variety of reasons outside their control, including Bumgardner’s desire to have an edge in the hitting department against his opponent that day.
I think MInnesota dodged a bullet on this one.
Solid move. He’s a good pitcher whose decline is mild, and the price is perfectly okay.
You got all these other teams that made the playoffs last year going big and then there is the Twins
Dodgers and cardinals
and when all of those other teams fall flat on their face, the Twins will drive right on by and wave on their way to the American League Central title.
And another playoff sweep, probably by the Yankees.
Safe to say the Twin Cities get similar treatment to Toronto and other “generally looked down upon free agent destinations”?
Dont fret Twins fans. You’re still not touching the Yanks just like my Jays. But, this move with Romo is a solid move. 🙂
Best ballpen in entire American League now
Ballpoint pens are the best.
As the children say these days, Romo brings “swag” to the boring Twins.
“a team that fully intends to contend in 2020.” Yeah, but contend for what… selling the most Cuban sandwiches ?
The Pohlads intend on having a .500 ball club. That’s “competitive” and they hope a little luck goes their way and they can “contend” for a Wild Card spot or Division Championship.
Every other team in baseball desires a World Series victory. The Twins desire a “competitive chance” at the playoffs.
WOW! Theilbar AND Romo, in the same week!!! Well, no wonder we didn’t seek MadBaum or Wheeler. We’re set! Mediocrity, here we come!!!!!