Blue Jays bullpen woes go from bad to worse with latest injury update

Much has been said about the catastrophic state of the Toronto Blue Jays bullpen so far in 2024. Ranked a lowly 28th in the league in bullpen ERA and 25th in opponent's batting average entering Saturday’s matchup against the New York Yankees, what was once an area of strength has now become a major concern for a franchise with still some slim hopes in making the postseason this year. Well, it turns out things have now actually gotten a lot worse for the Jays with the latest update on closer Jordan Romano.

Romano initially landed on the IL at the beginning of June, retroactive to May 30, due to right elbow inflammation. But since then, Romano suffered a setback in his rehab last week when he experienced some unexpected soreness in his right elbow during a long toss session and was shut down for a few days. According to Jays manager John Schneider, things have now gone from bad to worse as he has been shut down from throwing again after feeling discomfort in his right elbow on Friday and will now be visiting Dr. Keith Meister to determine the next steps of action.

Romano was amidst his worst season since his debut year in 2019 as he has posted a dreadful 6.59 ERA and 1.46 WHIP while uncharacteristically yielding runs in 7 of his 15 appearances to date. Looking back, Romano also began the season on the injured list as a result of the same ailing right elbow before joining the team in mid-April. There’s no doubt that it had played a major role in his lack of effectiveness witnessed this season, given the issue has flared up once again to a greater extent this time around.

Nevertheless, with the current state of the Blue Jays relief corps practically in shambles in recent weeks, the possibility now of losing one of their best for an extended period of time could spell disaster for what has already been a tumultuous season for the team.