Philadelphia Phillies fans got their first look at one of the team's biggest offseason additions on Opening Day when manager Rob Thomson sent Jordan Romano to the mound to protect a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning against the Washington Nationals. Laboring through 29 pitches, the former two-time All-Star allowed two critical runs to cross the plate and left his team in a 3-3 ball game heading into the ninth.
Romano was signed by the Phillies this past offseason to a one-year, $8.5 million deal to help fill the void left by Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez, who each signed elsewhere in free agency. It's obviously hard to forecast a pitcher's entire season after only one performance, but Romano's rough debut certainly left a lot to be desired — although he redeemed himself in Monday’s home opener. While he was eventually bailed out on Opening Day by Alec Bohm's game-winning RBI double in extra-innings and two scoreless innings from José Alvarado and Matt Strahm, Phillies fans caught the first glimpse of what life could be like this season without Hoffman and Estévez closing the door in the eighth and ninth innings.
That point was further reinforced by Estévez's Kansas City Royals debut on Saturday when he notched his first save with a scoreless ninth inning against the Cleveland Guardians. Estévez never seemed to be in the Phillies' long-term plans after being brought over in a costly trade deadline deal with the Angels last summer; there was some hope that Hoffman would return after experiencing a career resurgence in the 2023 season.
But after signing with the Blue Jays on a three-year, $33 million deal, Hoffman made a great first impression with his new ball club in a close game against the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday.
Former Phillies reliever Jeff Hoffman locks down his first save for Blue Jays
Hoffman's free agent market took a little while to develop this offseason, and after poor medical reports on his right-throwing arm scuttled deals with the Atlanta Braves and Baltimore Orioles, the Blue Jays swooped in and signed the 2024 NL All-Star to become the team's new closer and replacement for Romano, who was non-tendered and was coincidentally signed by the Phillies.
Blue Jays fans got their first look at Hoffman when he entered Sunday's game in the ninth inning with Toronto leading 3-1.
Jeff Hoffman’s closing entrance is straight cinema 🎥 pic.twitter.com/xUJqy5MQlG
— Blue Jays Way Podcast (@BlueJaysWaypod) March 30, 2025
It didn't take long for Hoffman to make a good first impression with our neighbors to the north, as Hoffman looked electric in his Blue Jays debut. He struck out two without allowing a hit or a run in 18 pitches. Hoffman's performance also quieted questions about the health of his arm, especially after his four-seam fastball was clocked at 96.6 mph during his lone inning of work, while his split-finger and slider resulted in his two strikeouts on the day.
Jeff Hoffman gets the save as the @BlueJays win it 3-1 to split the series with the Orioles! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Co9yii63T8
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) March 30, 2025
While Phillies fans will certainly miss Hoffman's consistency late in games this season, it's too early to count out the possibility that Romano will get back to his All-Star form with a healthy season. While it was only a snapshot, the Phillies could have made a very big mistake by not resigning Hoffman to a new deal this past offseason.
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