Perry Minasian believes the Angels can help Jordan Romano rediscover himself.
A day after the Angels signed the former All-Star reliever to a $2 million deal, the general manager explained why he thinks there is hope for him to put last season’s 8.23 ERA behind him.
“There are some things we feel like we can do delivery-wise,” Minasian said Wednesday. “There are some things we feel like we can do with the slider. The biggest thing is the stuff is still good. He missed bats. I know the ERA was high, but the underlying numbers were pretty good. We felt that with the combination of tightening up some things from a grip standpoint, doing some things with a delivery standpoint, he could have a more productive year. And he’s really motivated.”
Romano, 32, was an All-Star in 2022 and 2023 with the Toronto Blue Jays. He had arthroscopic elbow surgery in 2024 and struggled with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2025.
Romano still struck out 47 in 42⅔ innings. Much of the damage against him came on an unsightly 10 homers allowed.
His expected ERA was 3.99 and his Fielding Independent Pitching ERA was 5.39, which both suggest he was at least partly a victim of bad luck last season.
Getting more out of Romano will be one of the projects for new pitching coach Mike Maddux.
The Angels also signed right-hander Alek Manoah, who will be looking for a similar bounceback to his All-Star form. The pitching staff also includes right-hander Grayson Rodriguez, who missed the past season and a half with injury.
“Is there risk? Yes,” Minasian said. “There’s going to be risk. We have done a lot of things that have an element of risk to it this offseason. With that being said, we believe there’s a major reward on a lot of these guys. They’ve done it in the past and they’re motivated to do it again. So we’ll see how it all plays out.”
The other reliever the Angels signed this week did this year exactly what they’d like to see Romano and Manoah do next year. Left-hander Drew Pomeranz did not pitch in the majors from 2022-24 because of various injuries. In 2025, Pomeranz posted a 2.17 ERA with the Chicago Cubs. That earned him a $4 million deal with the Angels.
Pomeranz held lefties to a .176 average in 2025, which is appealing to the Angels. Brock Burke, the other lefty currently in the Angels’ bullpen, is no more effective against lefties than righties.
“There’s a lot of really good left-handed hitters that you’re going to see later in games, in big moments,” Minasian said. “To have a guy like Drew out there definitely makes us feel a lot better than we did a day ago.”
Minasian said the bullpen roles are to be determined.
“There’s no set closer right now,” Minasian said. “We’re still looking at the bullpen. It’s not an area where we’re done. We’re still going to look to add to that group that we currently have. In our eyes, it’s to get as many good arms as we can and see what happens.”
Romano could win the closer role with a good spring. Otherwise, the job could go to Robert Stephenson or Ben Joyce. Both pitchers have the stuff to close games, but both missed almost all of the 2025 season with injuries.
Minasian said Joyce is “doing great,” but they “are not going to rush him. He’s too valuable. Once he gets to spring training, we’ll see where he’s at. We’ll go to day to day.”
Stephenson has started a throwing program and “all signs point to him being ready to go” in spring training, Minasian said.
Beyond the bullpen, the Angels still need a third baseman and they could use another starting pitcher and a center fielder.
They are currently about $38 million below their 2025 payroll.
“There’s definitely opportunity,” Minasian said. “There’s a number of very good players out in the market, be in trade or free agency, and we’re active in a lot of areas. We’ll see how it all plays out.”
