Blue Jays: Could they be the mystery team in on Sergio Romo?

According to Jon Heyman of the MLB Network, free agent reliever Sergio Romo is closing in on a one-year pact with an unknown team.

So the speculation begs the question, could the Blue Jays be the mystery team in on the former Tampa Bay Rays hurler? The Blue Jays are still attempting to shore up their bullpen and Sergio Romo was a key component in the Rays “opener” experiment they rolled out last season.

The 35-year old pitcher was the Rays closer last season securing 25 saves, however, he also started five contests when Kevin Cash and company flipped the script attempting to pitch to match-ups and maximize their leverage versus opponents to start ballgames.

The other dynamic to all of this is that the Rays bench coach last season was as we all know, the Blue Jays new rookie manager, Charlie Montoyo. Could Montoya be in managements ear about locking up the services of the veteran reliever? Montoyo would obviously have first-hand knowledge on the character of Romo and what he can do for a young bullpen. Time will obviously tell.

Montoyo has already expressed interest in bringing the “Shift” and the  “Opener” to Toronto under the right circumstances:

"“I was in charge of the shifting with the Rays and I saw that work, so I’m going to bring that to Toronto. The Opener – at the end of the day with the Opener, you have to have good pitching. If we have the right people to do it, we’re going to do it, because I saw it work. That’s the two things I’m going to bring from Tampa.”"

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Romo could also provide some insurance in case closer Ken Giles falters or struggles out of the gate. The former Rays closer has 109 saves under his belt and sports a 2.86 earned run average over his 11-year career although in 2018 that ballooned to 4.14 in 73 games.

Romo earned just $2.5 million last season so it is not like the veteran is going to break the bank and actually fits the mold of what the Blue Jays are attempting to do in their bullpen. Romo could be a low-cost, high upside reliever they could potentially flip for an asset at the trade deadline.

We will more than likely know who the unknown team is after Romo passes his medical in the coming days, but if I were a betting man, I would lean towards the possibility of the Blue Jays bringing Romo into the fold for the 2019 campaign.