While Sergio Romo was eager to put on a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform, his time pitching for the organization this spring has been limited. Romo appeared in two games prior to departing for the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
Along with Adrian Gonzalez and Alex Verdugo, the right-handed reliever represented Team Mexico. Soon after Mexico was eliminated from the WBC in the first round, Gonzalez, Romo and Verdugo returned to Camelback Ranch.
But Romo has been sidelined due to back stiffness. After nursing the injury for a couple days, the 34-year-old, along with fellow relievers Pedro Baez and Josh Ravin, threw a bullpen session, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
Earlier in the day, eight Dodgers pitchers threw bullpen sessions, including right-handed relievers Sergio Romo, Pedro Baez and Josh Ravin.
The bullpen sessions were a first for Romo since experiencing back discomfort, and Ravin since he was sidelined by a groin injury on March 13. It was Baez’s second time throwing as he looks to bounce back from a bruised right thumb.
In his two Cactus League appearances, Romo has thrown a combined two scoreless innings and recorded five strikeouts. He allowed three runs on four hits in 1.1 innings during two WBC games. Ravin is 1-0, has seven strikeouts and allowed eight runs on 10 hits, including two home runs, in 5.1 innings across five Cactus League appearances.
Baez has yet to appear in a Cactus League game. He sustained the thumb injury early in camp, was shut down, and was forced to stop throwing a second time after attempting a comeback in early March.
Assuming full health and a sufficient innings base, Baez and Romo figure to factor into the Dodgers’ bullpen picture come Opening Day of the regular season. Whereas Ravin may be utilized at some point later in the year.
