The Philadelphia Phillies have gotten off to a hot start this season, beginning with a 7-2 record. This past weekend, Philadelphia won two of three games against the defending World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers. While the Phillies' pitching struggled in the first series of the season, it has since settled down for the most part.
That said, one member of Philadelphia's bullpen has had a rough start to the season that continued on Sunday. RHP Jordan Romano allowed two hits and three runs and walked one batter in 2/3 of an inning.
Following this outing, Bryce Harper was asked if he had any advice for Romano. Harper said, "Keep your head up, keep going. It's early in the year. So obviously, he is going to throw some big innings for us, so that's why he's down there." Harper added, " Just got to get in the swing of things and get him going a little bit." (h/t TimKellySports)
I asked Bryce Harper if there’s anything you can say to a teammate like Jordan Romano when they get off to a slow start. @OnPattison pic.twitter.com/2WKmT1JOJf
— Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) April 6, 2025
Bryce Harper Still Believes in Jordan Romano
Harper's comments are not surprising in the least. The 32-year-old veteran is a leader in the clubhouse and leaders don't throw their men under the bus, especially this early in the season. Nevertheless, fans are not happy with Romano so far this season.
In five appearances this season, the 31-year-old reliever has a 15.75 ERA and has allowed six hits, walked four batters, and had six strikeouts. Fans' displeasure with Romano started after the first game of the season when he allowed one hit, two runs, and walked one batter against the Washington Nationals.
Since then, he had two good performances against a bad Colorado Rockies team and two bad ones against the Dodgers. Given the circumstances, it's fair for fans to be worried about the 31-year-old reliever's chances of being successful against good teams this year.
Still, Harper is right; giving Romano at least the first two weeks to a month to get into a grove is important. If he hasn't figured it out by the end of April, then Phillies fans should start to panic.